McCain was not my candidate.  Not originally.  His close ties to, and having worked with very liberal democrats had me worried.  Once it was clear that he was going to be the Republican nominee, he was the best of what was left.  Let's face it, the Democrats were choosing a nominee that didn't believe he was ready to run on a national ticket.  Even Obama's running mate, Joe Biden, doesn't believe he is ready, and in fact would have preferred to run with John McCain.  Hillary Clinton also chose McCain over Obama.

What won me over?  Was it 2000 Democratic VP candidate turned Independent Senator Joe Lieberman's endorsement speech for John McCain?  After all, the Democrats still think well enough about Lieberman to have placed him in a leadership position as an important committee chairman.  His speech was convincing, specifically the line about how McCain could anger his own party, but he was doing it because of what he believed in.

Was it Rudy Giuliani's fantastic speech, where he compared the resumes of the two Presidential candidates?  The first candidate, John McCain has an extensive list of accomplishments and experience and even some things that provide a "Wow" moment.  The second candidate, Barak Obama, his biggest experience has been to vote present rather than make decisions on important issues, which was the job he was hired to do.   Obama has never led anything and, in fact, has been doing nothing more than running for the next highest office ever since being elected to the Illinois legislature.

Maybe it was Fred Thompson telling the fantastic biography of John McCain, including his tenure as a POW.  He contrasted that with the description of Obama as the most Liberal and inexperienced Presidential candidate ever, but may be a good match for the Democratic congress, which is the most unpopular congress in history. 

Could it have been McCain running mate Sarah Palin?  She was engaging, funny, and extremely comfortable in her speech to the RNC.  McCain has made a tremendous choice for a running mate.  She has leadership experience and is a serious reformer.  Her record for ethics reform and standing up to special interests in her time as Governor is a testament to a good leader.  She was very good at hitting Obama at his weak points with shots while smiling and having fun.  My favorite line was when she said, "I guess a small-town mayor is sort of like a "community organizer," except that you have actual responsibilities."

Possibly it was McCain's own speech to the RNC that got to me.  After a tremendous build up by the speakers leading up to the candidates acceptance speech, my expectations were pretty flat.  How could he possibly perform as the Headliner when the warm up acts provided headliner performances?  But he did it.  He knocked it out of the park.  I particularly liked hearing him discuss how he has worked with members of both parties to do what he felt was important.  It is for this reason that Democrats like Senator Feingold of Wisconsin, as well as Ted Kennedy, Hillary Clinton and Joe Biden consider him a friend and someone they enjoyed working with and consider him ready to lead.

So what won me over?  It was a combination of all the above.  While the Republican platform and ideals are what I most closely identify with, it is the person at the top of the ticket that I have to believe will follow through on those commitments while leading and protecting this country.  That is why I am proud to endorse John McCain as our next President.

John McCain chose Sarah Palin as his VP candidate to help provide balance to the Republican ticket.  She brings with her a more conservative background as well as youth.  The amazing thing is that in Sarah Palin's and Barack Obama's relatively short political careers, the Republican VP candidate has accomplished so much more than the Democratic Presidential candidate.

Barack Obama chose Joe Biden as his VP candidate, thus admitting that he severely lacked any foreign relations experience.  Joe Biden brings that to the Democratic ticket along with experience and accomplishments that are non-existent by the Democratic Presidential nominee. 

What does Joe Biden think of his running mate?  Just a few months ago he stated that Barack Obama is not ready to lead.

While John McCain and Sarah Palin on the Republican ticket are a slam dunk winner over their competition, Barack Obama will do well next year on the Speaking circuit.  After all, that's the one and only thing that he does well.

What else has Obama lied about?  Anything that might help line his pockets or those of his friend’s maybe?

For one thing, not all of Obama's support comes from the little donor he likes to tout with increasing frequency. "Industry PACs may not give directly to his campaign, but employees of industries may do so, and many of his contributors have come from executives and their spouses," the Wall Street Journal noted. "For example, Mr. Obama leads all candidates in donations from the pharmaceutical industry and commercial banks, among other industries.

This is the dirty little secret of the internet financing that the Obama campaign enjoys, but doesn’t want us to know about.  He is accepting huge sums of money that are directed to his campaign by companies and industries that are buying his influence.

This is simply the large-scale version of a shakedown.  Seems that Obama and former Milwaukee Alderman Michael McGee have read from the same Democratic playbook and have an awful lot in common.

Once again Obama shows his ignorance or lack of intelligence and it gets no play in the press.  Dan Quayle must be spinning in his grave.  Oh, yeah, Quayle isn't dead yet.

On Memorial Day, Barack Obama made one of his famous speeches of "just words", in which he says "On this Memorial Day, as our nation honors its unbroken line of fallen heroes — and I see many of them in the audience here today — our sense of patriotism is particularly strong."

To see the video click here.

Apparently Barack is starring in his own version of "Day of the Living Dead".  Obama, what is Memorial Day for?

In the same speech of "just words", he talks about his uncle  "who was part of the first American troops to go into Auschwitz and liberate the concentration camps."  The problem with this is that it was the Soviet troops that liberated Auschwitz and not the Americans.  Again, there is no mention of this in the media.  Also, since his mother was an only child, his campaign is trying to sell it as a great uncle.  Still nothing.

Don't tell me that there isn't a severe liberal bias in the media!

In 1992 Dan Quayle was pummeled in the media for misspelling "potatoe", and his candidacy was finished.  Media tells us that this candidate is too stupid to be president.

In 2008 Obama says that he has visited 57 states with one more to go, but it gets no mention by most media or at best it was buried in another story on the last page.  He reminds me of one of the intelligence challenged contestants on Jay Leno's "Jaywalking".  Where they ask people on the street some of the most basic questions, but their answers are comical, because of how lame these people are.

To see the video of Obama and his 57 states click here.

You can bet that if John McCain had made this same mistake, we would be hearing about it constantly for the next six months.  Comedians and media would have many jokes about it being a "senior moment", and his candidacy would be finished.

Maybe if Obama paid more attention to the flag, he would get a visual reminder to help him with the correct number of states that make up The United States of America.  Here is a picture of the flag lapel pin that Obama probably owns.

One week after his 57 states comment (That's right, most of us haven't even heard of this, but it has been over a week), Obama came on stage to a raucous crowd and said "Thank you, Sioux City".  The crowd went dead silent.  Why?  Because he was one state away in Sioux Falls, South Dakota and not Sioux City, Iowa.  Maybe in Obama's 57 states, parts of Iowa and South Dakota have been combined while other states have been split up, but citizens still don't dig it if you screw up the name of their city.

Why is it that the media can destroy a conservative candidate for being stupid, but "The Great Speaker", Obama, gets a pass while consistently showing his lack of intelligence on basic facts.  This is as fair and honest as NBA referee, Tim Donaghy, who bet on games that he officiated.

I wonder which candidate the media is backing?  Hmmm?  What the f***?

Now, I'm  gonna get in trouble for saying this, but I hate the fact that people feel everybody needs to be politically correct at all times.  Here is what some people are upset with Obama for:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Juy9NwI8_i0

As Author and sales guru Jefrey Gitomer once said to a woman at a presentation I attended, "Do you mind if I call you sweetie?"  She said "No".  Gitomer said "Good, because some chicks don't like it when you call them sweetie". 

Politicians really need to watch the words they use.  Because they will most certainly be used against them in the court of public opinion.

I don't see anything wrong with what he said, but my vote only counts once.  Twice, if I live in Milwaukee and vote democrat.

More and more of my entertainment comes from the internet.  I particularly find a number of very clever and creative videos on sites like You Tube.

Here is one of my more recent favorites in light of todays Pennsylvania primary.

Sometimes I get the impression that all three of the major party candidates want somebody else to win the election.

This weeks biggest loser is Barack Obama.  In one short statement, while speaking in San Francisco, B.O. managed to alienate all of small town America.  The more often he speaks without a teleprompter in a prepared speech saying the same things over and over again, the more elitist and out of touch he sounds.  He doesn't acknowledge the Pledge of Allegiance, he won't wear the American Flag lapel pin, his preacher and Spiritual Adviser says "God damn America", and his wife Michelle said her husbands campaign made her proud to be an American for the first time.  This is not a one time mistake.  This is a pattern of being anti-American in actions and words. 

I can't give a pass to John McCain this week either.  It's one thing to confuse North Dakota with South Dakota, I mean who cares, really.  But, John has for the second time in public confused al Qaeda as a Shiite group instead of a Sunni group.  Most Americans don't get the difference either, but that's no excuse for the candidate who should have the most knowledge in foreign policy.

Hillary, why are you still married to this buffoon?  Just as talk was quieting down, and the media pretty well buried the story to begin with, Bill had to bring up your sniper fire story again.  He tried to pass it off that when you related that story it was late and you were tired.  The only problem was that it was a morning speech.  Maybe the two of you are perfect for each other.  Neither one of you know where the truth actually is anymore.  Both of them are telling a story about how Hillary tried to enlist after law school and was turned down.  As a law school graduate, from Yale no less, she would have been allowed to commission as an officer or Judge Advocate General, and the reasons she states she couldn't get in would not have applied.

Will the real winner please shut up!

If you watched American Idol Thursday night, you saw all three Presidential candidates in recorded messages asking for people to support the Idol Gives Back charity. (I swear I was only flipping through and don't usually watch Idol.  OK, so maybe occasionally, but never more than once or twice per week.)  First up was Hillary, who looked comfortable reading her prepared piece. Her appearance on SNL probably helped her.  Next up was McCain.  He was entertaining and even funny as he made a crack about Simon and immigration.  Last up was Obama.  He looked stiff and uncomfortable doing this.  Come to think of it, he has always looked a little uncomfortable when doing anything but a prepared political speech.

The three of them are running for a different type of American Idol.  One that we can start to tear down the second we elect them the winner.  It's America, and we have that right.  It's an easy thing to do and too many people enjoy doing it.

On this night, John McCain was easily the winner. 

The further removed we get from that time, the more difficult it is for younger people to appreciate just how chaotic those times were and how dangerous it was for a man like Martin Luther King to fight for what was right and speak out the way that he did. 

Coming into the 1960’s, African Americans still had to deal with the Jim Crow laws, which had been created and enforced by White Democrats during the past 90 years.  These laws mandated separate but equal status for African Americans, but resulted in inferior service and accommodations. They also were designed to restrict their civil rights, thus disenfranchising African Americans by restricting their ability to vote. 

If that weren’t enough, there was the feeling of superiority and fear on the part of some European Americans (my preferred term for Whites), and the desire to keep African Americans down.  Like most beliefs, there were differing levels of how passionate people felt on this subject, and that included many who were ready to commit violent acts to support their beliefs.

While these laws have been eliminated and tensions and attitudes have improved with time, it makes it harder for today’s youth to fully understand how great a man Dr. King was.  He was a great leader and a hero for all of Mankind.

If Dr. King could pop in on us today, I think he would be proud of what changes and improvements have been made, but disappointed by how long it has taken and how much more work needs to be done.  But, beliefs and attitudes that have been built up and existed over generations, will also take time to be corrected.  This is similar to the changes that the US is trying to implement in the Middle East.  Our presence may be required for longer than some people desire, but that is the only way to accomplish long lasting change.

Dr. King would be proud to see an African American playing an instrumental part in this presidential election, but he would be disappointed by the fact that there is so much attention paid to the fact that Barack Obama is an African American.  Dr. King deserves better.  Like all of our heroes, he should be remembered and celebrated for all they have accomplished, and not more so just because some pretender reminds a few people of him.

During this year’s celebration of Martin Luther King, Jr., I heard many people trying to compare him with Barack Obama.  This is not a fair comparison.  The only place that the two are close is in their oratory skills.  While Dr. King was a hero and a great leader, Mr. Obama is the poster child for the “Peter Principle”.  He is already incompetent as a Senator, but now some are ready to promote him again. 

Yes, it has to be said, comparing MLK to BO stinks!

Hillary Clinton wants a do-over in Michigan and Florida, because those two states had primary elections that the Democrats decided wouldn't count because the states did not follow the Democratic party rules.  Hillary Clinton is behind in the delegate count for the Democratic Presidential nomination, and those are two states that she would likely win and move her closer to Barrack Obama and improve her chances in convincing "Super Delegates" (no they are not action heroes) that she should be the Democratic nominee.  Obama does not want a do-over, because it could only hurt him.  Instead, he favors splitting the delegates from the two states 50-50 so that they are counted.  Never mind that this is not how the states would actually have voted.  If their positions were reversed, Obama would be fighting for the do-over and Clinton would want to leave it as is.  Neither really cares about everybody being represented, unless it benefits them personally.

 The Democratic Party already has the most convoluted rules for selecting delegates.  I think you can get college credit for taking the course in understanding how it works.  After this year, you can bet that they will make major changes in the system again.  If the Democrats had a similar system to the Republicans, Hillary Clinton would already have clinched the nomination.  The Democrats ruled out the peoples vote in Michigan and Florida, because those states moved their primary elections to an earlier date, against the wishes of the Democratic Party.  Apparently it is the Democratic Party that doesn't want to count every vote.

Barrack Obama, one of the most eloquent speakers of recent times, is choking on his own words lately.  Turns out some of the words that he has been using aren't his, they are from someone else's speeches.  It may be that the original speaker, Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick, a friend of his, gave him permission to use the lines, but it has been Obama's speeches that have earned him most of his praise and support.  Now, it turns out that these are not even original. 

This is a minor point when the bigger problem is that he says nothing.  I take that back, he says he stands for change and for changing politics as usual.  This sounds good to the masses, but let's see what he's been up to lately.  First, he vowed to follow the rules of public finance campaign spending, but now is changing his mind as he realizes that special interest money may be important to win.  Second, he has put nearly $700,000 into the campaigns of the "super delegates", those democratic delegates that may decide their party's nomination.  Lastly, seeking the endorsement of labor, he declared his opposition to a U.S. - Korea Free Trade Agreement, even though he has pledged to "renew American diplomacy".  Sounds like the newbie is learning how things get done and it sounds like politics as usual.

Even though for weeks and months critics, including myself, have complained that Obama is all flash and no substance, some of his biggest supporters still aren't getting that message.  A State Senator from Texas went on MSNBC to speak on behalf of Obama earlier this week and was absolutely dumbstruck when he could not list one thing that Obama has done. 

Obama may me in for a rough ride.  Usually these things don't start coming to light until the two major party candidates are set.  This year though he not only has to worry about the republicans putting dents in his Teflon, but Hillary Clinton is starting to resort to pressing her opponent on these flaws to try to stay alive in the race for delegates. 

This is Presidential Primary Season.  You are probably voting for the candidate that has the best track record and experience to improve our country or the one that has mapped out a specific plan that matches your desires and dreams for our country. 

Some people are voting based on the most insane reasons.  Some will vote for Hillary because she’s a woman and others will vote for Obama because he is black.  What has this got to do with which candidate would make a better president?  A story from the TV Show “The View”, had Whoopi Goldberg asking the others on the show if they would vote for Hillary if she wasn’t a woman.  Now first of all, other than the fact that Chelsea Clinton exists, there isn’t much proof that Hillary is a woman.  In that family it always seemed as if there were two alpha males competing for head of the country.  When Bill Clinton said “ I did not have sex with that woman”, I was kind of hoping he was talking about Hillary.  But, on the show, one of the other hosts said that if Hillary were not a woman she would vote for Obama, but she is supporting Hillary because she is a woman.  What are you thinking?  Voting for Hillary because she is a woman is sexist, and voting for Obama because he is black is racist.  Just when I think we have made some small strides in improving on racism and sexism, idiots speak and it all vanishes.

I sometimes wonder how women could even have any respect for Hillary.  Bill Clinton participated in some highly publicized extra marital affairs, and yet she thinks so little of herself that she still stays with him.  The upside for me if the Clintons win would be seeing what Bill Clinton would do in the White House.  Will he be Hillary’s version of Billy Carter, the embarrassing family member that gets drunk at the family parties and then makes such an ass of himself that you wish you could disown him, or will he find new and interesting ways to utilize the Lincoln Bedroom?

On the other hand, you have Barack Obama making a major showing in the primaries so far.  The man is an eloquent speaker, and with the use of cheerleaders stationed around him when he speaks, gets the crowds worked into a frenzy of cheering fans shouting for “Change”.  But if you ask any of his supporters what proof or track record he has for accomplishing what he says he can, you are usually left looking at the poor goof with his mouth hanging open and nothing to say.  Change for the sake of change isn’t always a good thing, but most people like the concept.  It’s the same reason that the backup quarterback is always the most popular player for the Chicago Bears.  Fans think he has to be better than the starter. 

The republicans look like they have already made their decision, with John McCain pulling away in the delegate count.  It was already a strange year for republicans, due to the backlash in the country against the war in Iraq; it appears that several potentially viable candidates shied away from running.  Conventional wisdom is that they would wait while the Democrats screwed things up again for the next four years before making their run for office. 

With the poor choices available in the Democratic Party, even a weak Republican candidate like John McCain makes the most sense.  He has the necessary experience and the right ideas on how to best protect Americans from terrorists as well as the big government, socialist ideas of the Democrats.  But the next step is still up to us, as we need to give him a better congress with which to work.