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The Democrats are Our Southern Border by Andy Peth

10/29/2014

With a few days left till the 2014 midterm elections, I offer one last plea to Conservatives who might withhold their votes from GOP candidates. I know they’ve heard enough, but I’ll be brief.

First, I’m not naïve. Having witnessed litanies of leadership sins, the Tea Partier in me feels anger, frustration, and distrust. I see dirty power plays. I see squishy campaign “experts” damage our brand by blurring lines between us and the Left. I know some GOP bigwigs take my vote for granted when I cast it for compromising candidates. I get it. I always have gotten it.

But I refuse to endorse strategy that hurts my fellow Conservatives, no matter how popular that would make me in some circles. I can’t do it—you all mean too much to me. For this reason, I’ll pose one last analogy, using a Q and A on border security:

QUESTION: Should America use its resources to shut down the border?

ANSWER: Of course!

QUESTION: But which border?

ANSWER: Both, but start with the southern border, where we see the greatest incursion on our sovereignty. Once that’s secured, we can work on the northern border.

Nearly all of us would agree with this reasoning, so let me offer a parallel Q and A:

QUESTION: My vote is my resource, so shouldn’t I use it to fight incursions against liberty?

ANSWER: Of course!

QUESTION: And while I’d love to oppose all incursions at once—including those by the GOP—shouldn’t I first vote for the only real opportunity to remove the greater incursion? And isn’t the greatest incursion against liberty—by far—the Democratic Party?

You get the point. Democrats are our southern border, while some Republicans are to the north—and I have but one vote to stop the greatest incursion. Voting to “stop both” stops nothing, allowing the greater incursion to trample us. We must focus resources—votes—on the south.

For example, look at Colorado Republican candidate for US Senate, Cory Gardner. Is his immigration stance as tough as mine? No, but it’s much better than that of his Democratic opponent, Mark Udall. Is Gardner as tough on green energy as me? Not at all, but he’s light years better than Udall. And on issues like gun rights, school choice, corporate taxes, abortion, etc., Gardner is clearly the “northern border” I can address later, while Udall is the “southern border” I must shut down immediately.

This is true across the nation. Focusing our efforts “southward,” we’ll provide Ted Cruz and Mike Lee a Senate majority—and my heart would soar from watching Harry Reid languish in the minority. Friends, I’m tired of sharing misery and bitterness. I WANT MY HEART TO SOAR.

Again, I’m not naïve. Mitch McConnell is not my political savior (or even my friendly acquaintance). But this is war, people, and wars are almost always won through uncomfortable alliances with those who have failed us in times past. There is no other way. Ignoring the southern border while shaking our fists at the north, we stand by as the greater threat explodes forth like a ruptured floodgate.

So please don’t stand by. Despite all our frustrations with the north, we’ve no hope of fixing those without first sealing off the south. Let’s buy time for liberty with a victory this Tuesday, and then join together on Wednesday with a two year push toward a better tomorrow. I know such promises have been broken before, but I didn’t make those—I can only speak for myself.

And I myself want only the best for patriots everywhere.

Thanks for hearing me out.

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News and Notes by Andy Peth

10/25/2014

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Please use this link if you are on a mobile device.

I just want to comment on a few recent events:

Beginning on the National Scene, when it was suggested that America halt incoming flights from Ebola-stricken nations, the Obama Administration refused, stressing how this could hinder relief efforts. Then, upon learning that relief is traditionally flown FROM our nation TO these countries, the Administration retracted its statement - but too late. A blistering New York Times piece had already reported the awkward exchange, featuring it within the Gardening Section, wherein I learned the importance of restricting hazardous air travel and prepping my lawn for winter.

All this reminded me of when Ron Paul voiced concerns over how a border fence could be used to keep Americans in. Months later, his supporters insisted he lost the GOP primary due to a conspiracy. I actually love Ron Paul...but...dude.

Checking in on Entertainment, my wife Cori and I just went to see "John Wick." Excellent film. In his usual low-key, understated fashion, Keanu Reeves (who could play a corpse in low-key, understated fashion) portrays an ex-hitman bent on bloody revenge after his dog is killed.

Was this a movie? No, it was a video game. Dropping like flies, virtually every body which appeared on screen was instantly dispatched by our sulking hero, making Reeves the first public figure since Barack Obama to raise awareness of the word, "trillions." Men died, women died, nuns, cameramen, some guy who was getting coffee for the cast - for one 20 minute stretch, the studio saved money with a rapid succession of cardboard cut-outs from a military shooting range, flipping them through our line of sight.

Do I recommend this film? Yes I do. In fact, all wives should see "John Wick," as it will help them "relate" and "connect" with what constantly occurs in their husbands' minds. Several times, I held Cori's hand, whispering, "I think we're making some real progress here." At one point, I even opened up, whispering, "I feel close to you right now, because we're sitting next to each other."

Our marriage is better from watching this movie, and yours will be, too. I give "John Wick" one trillion stars.

In Sports, Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers has now thrown 192 straight passes without an interception. Though still far from breaking Bart Starr's team record of 294, Rodgers has topped Brett Favre's personal best of 5.

Update: In a scathing response, Brett Favre insists he actually threw more passes without an interception than Rodgers - just not in a row.

Back in the News, the Obama Administration is tightening White House security after a knife-wielding malcontent breached its perimeter. Proposed improvements include increased manpower and a fence. When asked why such measures are not deployed along America's southern border, an Administration official noted how this was budgetarily unfeasible, since such a fence would have to be "really big."

This official was the "Fence Czar."

Ron Paul has also weighed in, remarking how a White House fence could conceivably be used to keep people from getting out. On this, Ron, we all agree.

Build the fence.

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Advancing Single Issues by Andy Peth

10/20/2014

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Ann Coulter has said her all-out opposition to amnesty makes her a single issue voter. Recently, Mike Huckabee declared his willingness to leave the GOP over gay marriage.

Are they alone? No. One Libertarian divulged to me he'd vote Republican - if it weren't for the GOP's "interventionist foreign policy." Not to be outdone, defense hawks speak just as firmly the other way. And during the 2012 election, a gun rights activist told me he "wouldn't wipe his (bleep) with Mitt Romney" - he even preferred Obama - because Romney wasn't strong on gun rights. Seriously.

Do I scorn single issue voters? Actually, I applaud them. In this age of poll-watching sycophants, single issue voters stand apart, courageously taking enemy fire - often for opinions I share.

But while pushing single issues is fine by me, I have one request: Do it effectively.

Bad Tactics

"If the GOP compromises on my issue, I'll leave."

I want Conservatives to make the best impact for their ideals, but the above approach won't work. Suppose one group takes this stance with abortion. Okay, fine. But then suppose another group makes the same 100% demand against amnesty. Well, I agree on both, so I'm in - but we just lost some more votes. Yet another group demands conformity on gun laws, then another on school vouchers, then non-interventionism, then interventionism, then marijuana, gay marriage, auditing the Fed...get the picture?

When facing an enormous, unified Democratic Party, this strategy only works if no one else uses it. I repeat: This strategy only works if no one else uses it. Thus, if enough people follow suit, we guarantee victory for the Democrats, who generally despise our single issues.

The math is simple: By drawing votes from the Democrats' only numerically viable opposition - usually the GOP candidate - single issue voting guarantees huge defeats for our single issues.

A Shrinking Choir

It gets worse. When I insist my single issue takes top priority, only those sharing my priority will listen to me - others are offended. See the effect? Demanding my way or the highway ensures the smallest audience for my message. I'm preaching to a shrinking choir.

Isn't this exactly what we're seeing? Today, our greatest problem is neither stubborn grassroots activists nor compromising GOP leadership, but rather a nation adrift from founding principles. Whatever your Conservative brand, America is rejecting it more each decade - and the Left uses media, entertainment, and academia to further this rejection.

So while we shrink our choir from within, the Left shrinks it from without. What a strategy.

Broadening the Choir

Clearly, the answer is not demanding candidates hold the line for our single issues in an increasingly skeptical society. The answer is to create a less skeptical society! Our single issues need a bigger audience - a bigger choir.

But how? At the mere mention of politics, people shut down - so how do we draw them in?

The solution, ironically, lies in the very diversity being driven off by our single issue demands. Think about it. Conservatives should unite around Individual Liberty, as opposed to the Left's lust for Collective Control. Individual Liberty; that's our core vision. And within that vision, a party of individuals can hold many views.

With more views, our outreach grows exponentially, drawing larger audiences for our single issues. Why? Because different kinds of Conservatives draw different kinds of listeners. I can't convince more people to be pro-life by only talking with pro-life people, but pro-choice Conservatives bring in endless opportunities! Likewise, while I oppose green energy, "green" Republicans fill the pews with new listeners for my gospel of oil - all while broadening my vision and sharpening my debate skills.

See how this works? In a nation where people run from discussion, our choir actually expands! Ted Cruz grows Marco Rubio's audience, and vice versa. Ann Coulter grows Mike Huckabee's audience, and vice versa. And don't even get me started on Chris Christie and Rand Paul...

Voila! Stop demanding, and we start expanding! Isn't that better?

Frustration and Fear

"But I want my issue advanced now!" Good! You should. And honestly, many compromises by GOP lawmakers have frustrated me. But never react without counting the cost, and never forget that it was our self-imposed shrinking choir - not that spineless lawmaker - which ultimately produced today's compromises. We need to address the cause of our problems, not amputate every symptom. The cost of all these amputations is unchecked Democrat tyranny.

If we want candidates to defend our single issues, then we must help our candidates by making these stances more popular - and this requires an expanding choir. Sorry, no quick fixes.

Perhaps we fear our views won't hold up in an expanding choir. We should give ourselves more credit, but I'll admit I too can feel this way. Keeping different ideas "out there," I sometimes find solace in unchallenged rightness. It's comforting, soft of. And yet, a comfy, shrinking choir provides a desolate future, so that's no option. Besides, if I wanted collectivist conformity, I'd still be a Democrat.

A Choir to Fear

No, I think it's time we turn the tables on our liberal tormentors. It's high time our Conservative Choir stops shrinking, starts growing, and blares Individual Liberty from booming radios with the windows rolled down. Yeah, baby! Putting the team first, we give our single issues an audience of millions.

Now there's a choir the Left will fear. Strong, diverse, intelligent, growing, united - more effective than our current model. No, I won't always get my way, but it will be much better than guaranteeing the defeat of everything I hold dear. Besides, I'll get my way a lot more often.

Is this compromise? No, poor strategy that seals the fate for all our single issues is compromise. This is something different entirely. It's called, "Wisdom." For Coulter and Huckabee, I request they keep their single issues - and great wisdom - in the choir. Let's learn and grow together, moving the needle of public opinion, so we can change the political landscape before shoving candidates into it.

Then we can attain that single issue which provides a vehicle for all other single issues: We can attain...victory.

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My 7 Habits of Highly Effective Conservative Unity Part 3 by Andy Peth

10/1/2014

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For those who missed Part 1, click here: For Part 2, click here:

(Note: This article is written with great respect to Stephen Covey’s “The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People”)

Do you remember the movie, “Independence Day”?

Aliens were attacking Earth, so all warring factions and nations united against a common threat. Gone were personal agendas. Gone were establishment insiders perpetuating their power; walling out the little people. Gone also was any talk of standing aside in rebuke of despised leaders. You either united and fought, or divided and ran. No in between. No excuses.

Unite or die.

Coming from the Left, I know their leaders seek the removal of everything we hold dear—the end of America. Like locusts, today’s Democrat leaders feast on America’s waning prosperity, and only your freedom stands in their way. The aliens are already here, my friends.

Looking at Conservatives, do we see a united response? Hardly. Instead, we see anger, foolishness, envy, even dirty tricks (witness Mississippi). Sometimes accurately, sometimes not, each group comforts itself by blaming others—all while aliens position spaceships overhead.

Let me be crystal clear: This is war, and if we’re done making excuses instead of saying what needs to be said, I now offer…what needs to be said.

Four Groups, Four Messages

The following are things members of each group could say to opposing groups within the Right. Since there is no back and forth, each statement will have to suffice on its own. Some key ingredients are:

Lead with the following 7-Habits-style statement:

“I won’t accept less than a win for both of us, as anything else leads to defeat. This isn’t naiveté; it’s realism. Neither my past mistakes nor yours control us today, so I won’t allow my bitterness—justified or not—to hold us back. Uniting around Individual Liberty—as opposed to the Left’s Collective Control—we can achieve great things. Yes, we’ll differ over how best to protect liberty and win politically, but our differences must teach us, not divide us. We must grow together, or we’ll die apart.”

To make all that short and sweet, just lead with, “We’re good.”
Next, begin by trying to state the other person’s concerns before stating yours—and do it well. Prove you can do this when others believe you can’t.
Next, honestly explain your concerns.
Finally, commit to a mutually beneficial course—one that would allow you to support each other’s candidates this November, while forging a greater coalition in 2015.

Group 1 - Christian Right addressing Social Liberals and Moderates:

“Okay…we’re good. You may think I judge you, or that I force my moral views—driving away votes. But honestly, I appreciate my fellow Conservatives. They don’t freak out when I say ‘Christmas,’ or act oppressed when God’s name is on public buildings. They see those things as part of our heritage—a heritage freeing them to believe what they want. Unlike the Left, Conservatives let me be me.”

“Sometimes, however, they want me to be me silently, hiding my views for political reasons. It seems when I do this, the country just drifts further from my beliefs—and it’s not like abandoning Christian morality has improved America. I hold my views for good reasons—proudly. I’ll support your candidates if they win the primaries, but I ask that you do the same for mine. I also ask to be treated as a fellow warrior for Liberty, not an embarrassment. Remember, I’m on your team—the media isn’t.”

“Let’s work together this November, with the pledge to unite even more afterward.”

Group 2 – Socially Liberal Moderate addressing Christian Right:

“Right back at ya’…we’re good. Truth is, while we don’t hold the same social views, I admire your willingness to risk backlash for your beliefs. That’s refreshing. I see you get mocked in movies and TV, and it’s ridiculous for your taxes to fund schools that teach against you. But they also teach against my political and economic beliefs, so we relate more than you think.”

Our movement lets us both speak freely, but some people belittle me because I’m not religious. Well, I just can’t make myself believe in God, and I don’t mind gays getting married or people smoking pot—but I won’t join the Left in attacking you. The Left wants to control my whole life. You don’t. Enough said.

I too am a warrior for Liberty. Beyond agreeing on that and voting together, I promise I’ll try to speak and listen respectfully. Please do the same. We’re on one team, both in this election and afterward.

Group 3 – “Establishment” Republicans addressing the Tea Party

“We’re good. I know you feel let down, watching a nation stray—and I know you believe I’m part of the problem. Well, my group hasn’t been perfect. Some centrist candidates have failed to draw clear lines between us and the Democrats—a death knell when the Left controls academia, entertainment, and the media. Pale pastels aren’t enough against all that. We need bright colors. We need you.”

“But we must speak to people where they are, not where we wish they’d be. Christine O’Donnell was a fine candidate, but Delaware’s voters had not been moved to where they’d accept her. The problem wasn’t O’Donnell, just as it wasn’t Angle, Buck, or several others. The problem was all of us, as we didn’t move public opinion first so such candidates could win. They were fine; we weren't. And just as moderate candidates have lost presidential campaigns, so conservative candidates—without a prepared landscape—have cost us as well.”

“Our civil war is disastrous. You feel cheated by the leadership—and sometimes you’re right. We feel attacked by Limbaugh, Hannity, Levin, Ingraham—people we admire. It’s suffocating. Conservatism should be the Free Marketplace of Ideas, but it often feels like an arena where differing thoughts are punished; mine as well as yours. This has to end.”

“So, no more ‘beating those Tea Partiers in the primaries.’ Instead, I’ll support all GOP candidates—whether I backed them or not. Money must be targeted toward close races, but I’ll gladly share polling data and discuss how best to position ourselves. And in 2015, we’ll build anew.”

Group 4 – Tea Party addressing the “Establishment”

“Fair enough…we’re good. Sometimes I think Republicans have abandoned me; that they’re just like Democrats. I hear a comment from Boehner or McConnell, then see corruption like in Mississippi, but I forget how isolated these are compared to the Left’s all-out assault upon me. The truth is:

It’s not Republicans mocking me in academia, movies, or on Comedy Central—it’s Democrats.
It’s not Republicans saying I’m racist and comparing me to terrorists—it’s Democrats.
It’s not Republicans targeting me with the IRS and EPA—it’s Democrats.
It’s not Republicans planting people carrying bigoted signs at our rallies—it’s Democrats.
And it wasn’t 41 out of 41 Democrat Senators voting against Obamacare—it was Republicans.”

“I know who the real bad guys are. I get it. And I’m not the lone authority on what is ‘Constitutional.’ But our nation has left that great document, so we must work diligently to restore its authority. No more playing politics. No more power moves, as these alienate the grassroots.”

“Too often, the GOP feels like a party of elites, not principle, but elitism won’t fix America. Only re-teaching Constitutional Conservatism can turn the tide, and I need total commitment on your part. Help me, and I’ll unite to win elections. I’ll even support moderates in states that won’t elect conservatives, so long as we’re united in making those states more conservative. But I haven’t seen this happening. Maybe I’m unfair, but I get that way when a Republican Chief Justice rescues Obamacare…or Chris Christie mocks the NRA…or GOP leaders discuss amnesty…etc.”

“Here’s my pledge: I’ll work with you, but this can’t end after Election Day. Let’s start fresh in 2015.”

Habit 7: Sharpening the Saw

You may consider those statements idealistic, but tell me this: What else will work? Suppose leaders from each group actually opened a summit by reading those statements. Might they listen more? Might they give unity a chance? As one who has seen it happen time and again in our “Unite the Right” workshops, I know for a fact they would.

So what is the 7th Habit? “Sharpening the Saw” means keeping all the other Habits sharp and fresh. Like exercise and prayer, the first six Habits are done over and over, not just once. Habit 7 is the Habit of renewal, allowing no setback to sidetrack us.

If you’ll allow me a scriptural reference, Proverbs 27:17 reads, “Iron sharpens iron, so one person sharpens another.” Why iron? Because iron isn’t too stiff and brittle; nor is it too soft and weak. Many metals, when struck against one another, either shatter or flop over. They don’t sharpen. They’re not strong enough. And neither are we, if we allow pains of the past to dictate our responses today—or worse yet, if we surround ourselves with like minds that barely “strike” us. In “Sharpening the Saw,” we develop the strength, vision, and wisdom to accomplish the impossible—a life free of addiction, a healed marriage, a growing business in hard times, or even a united Conservative Movement.

To sum up, The 7 Habits work like this:

Habits 1-3 = “I’m Free.”
Habits 4-6 = “We’re Free.”
Habit 7 = “I’m Staying Free. Are You In?”

Here’s the best part: As with bad habits like smoking or losing our temper, renewing the 7 Habits ingrains them in our character. Before long, no amount of meddling by Leftists will tear us apart.

Conclusion

In politics and in life, that day I stop excusing my actions through blaming others--the day I stop empowering their weaknesses to control me—becomes my Independence Day. I’m free. I’m powerful. And if Conservatives embrace this course together, they will share an even greater Independence Day…

…so all those aliens circling above won’t look unbeatable anymore.

Are you in?

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The Democrats are Our Southern Border by Andy Peth

News and Notes by Andy Peth

Advancing Single Issues by Andy Peth

My 7 Habits of Highly Effective Conservative Unity Part 3 by Andy Peth

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