Ward Cleaver for President

Mitt Romney, former governor of Massachusetts, 2008 US presidential candidate. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Mitt Romney accepted the nomination of the Republican party as its Great White House Hope in Tampa, Florida Thursday night.  Fortunately for him, Hurricane Isaac no longer dominates the headlines now that it's a tropical depression, dumping tons of water on New Orleans and points north.  So the way was clear for Romney to make the speech of his career.

As it turned out, Romney seemed to be running for National Dad than President of the United States.  His speech was warm, fuzzy, and totally "Leave It To Beaver"-ish, lacking any substance whatsoever.  When it came to criticizing President Barack Obama's record over the last four years, it was like Ward Cleaver gently expressing his disappointment when his sons Wally and Beaver did something wrong.  Romney also talked about his background, describing his childhood in an America where anything's possible.  Wally and the Beav grew up in that world, too.

Romney said he wanted to restore America's confidence from four years of a depressed economy by putting them back to work.  He also wanted to bring back the swagger that helped to gain the respect of the rest of the world, even though his recent European tour was a disaster.  Then he all but declared war on Iran over its alleged nuclear weapons program.  And, of course, he wants to repeal "Obamacare".  Even though most of the provisions in the Affordable Health Care Act came from when he was governor of Massachusetts.

Romney was just like the other speakers at the convention, conveniently skipping over two things:  The George W. Bush presidency, and GOP obstructionism in Congress that contributed to Obama's failures to get anything done.  There was hardly a mention of American soldiers currently serving in the two wars Bush started.

If the purpose of Romney's acceptance speech was for the Great American Public to see him as something other than a clueless rich guy who happened to be a Mormon, they succeeded.  He's now a sitcom dad reciting words of wisdom from a script or a Teleprompter, backed by a family that could have stepped out of a life insurance ad, espousing an America that once was and could be yet again.  Whether that's enough to persuade voters to ditch President Obama in November remains to be seen.

Neil Armstrong and Sally Ride: Space Pioneers

Sally Ride, the first American woman in space. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Neil Armstrong photographed by Buzz Aldrin after the completion of the Lunar EVA on the Apollo 11 flight (brighter and smaller version) (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Neil Armstrong was the first man to walk on the moon.  Sally Ride was the first American woman is space.  Both astronauts died within weeks of each other--Armstrong at 82, Ride at 61--as NASA (and space travel) struggles to become relevant again.

Armstrong was part of the Apollo 11 crew with Edwin "Buzz" Aldrin and Michael Collins that fulfilled President John F. Kennedy's 1961 prediction of an American landing on the moon within a decade.  On July 20, 1969, Armstrong stepped on to the moon's surface with these words:  "That's one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind".

Men on the moon gave way to space shuttles by the time Ride came along.  In 1983, as part of the crew of the Challenger, she became the first American female astronaut.

Both Armstrong and Ride were quiet people who, after retiring from NASA, tried to live their lives outside the spotlight.  They could have run for political office like John Glenn, or become a business executive like Frank Borman.  But they didn't.

Maybe Ride had more reason to keep a low profile.  After her death, it was revealed that she had been in a long-term relationship with another woman.  So she was a pioneer in that respect as well.

NASA's golden age has long gone, shrunken by layoffs, budget cuts and manned space flights being taken over by the private sector.  So it was kind of pathetic to see them cheering the landing of the latest unmanned space probe to Mars named "Curiosity".  The pictures we've been getting back from that craft could just as easily have been taken from the drought-stricken American southwest and midwest.

Today's generations might consider the efforts of Neil Armstrong and Sally Ride to be ancient history, with more down-to-earth problems taking center stage.  If it weren't for these space pioneers and countless others who risked their lives and reputations finding out what's out there, most of the technology that influences the life we live today wouldn't have been possible.  And you wouldn't be reading this on a computer or a mobile device.

Storm Clouds Over The GOP

As the Republicans gather for their nominating convention in Tampa, Florida, a tropical storm named Isaac is threatening to blow up into a major hurricane and spoil the party.  Isaac, according to the various meteorologists at the TV networks, is supposed to hit the Tampa Bay area either Sunday or Monday, just as the delegates are arriving. Projected landfall is believed to be along the Louisiana coast, as of this writing.

The GOP says they have contingency plans ready to go if the storm hits (Like what, move the whole thing to Orlando?).  But the obvious question comes to mind:  What was the GOP thinking when they decided to put their convention in Florida during the heart of hurricane season, possibly putting its delegates, guests and the media in harm's way?  (Well, OK.  Maybe they don't care so much about what happens to the media . . . )

There are other storm clouds over the party, some of which cannot be easily fixed.

• Mitt Romney, whose nomination will be made official during the convention, trails President Barack Obama in nearly every poll.  Though the gap is getting closer in swing states like Florida, Romney has yet to make the case as to why he deserves to be President and not Obama.  Not even naming Paul Ryan as his running mate has changed things, unless you live in Wisconsin.  But Romney does lead in one category:  he and his business pals have a 2-1 advantage over Obama when it comes to campaign money.  So expect lots of negative ads from now until November.
• Then there's Rep. Todd Akin of Missouri, who insists upon continuing his Senate campaign against Democratic incumbent Claire McCaskill in spite of the damage he did to the GOP over something he said.  Akin told KTVI, St. Louis' Fox station, that "legitimate rape" seldom leads to pregnancy in women (First, where the heck did that come from?  Second, how would he know?).  Both parties screamed at Akin to get out of the race, but all he's been doing is going on national TV shows to apologize again and again.  Akin seems to believe that it's a long way before November, and is counting on the short attention span of Missouri voters.  Much to the GOP's (and women's) dismay, he could be right.
• More evidence of Republican lawmakers behaving like frat boys:  Kansas congressman Kevin Yoder was reported swimming in the nude during a late night party in the Sea of Galilee.  Yes, that one.

Of course, the Republicans don't have a monopoly on idiotic behavior.  Democrats are perfectly capable of doing that, too.

• Vice President Joe Biden, who's been known to speak before thinking sometimes, told an audience of African-Americans that a Romney administration with banks playing a big role is going to make them slaves again.  Much to the disappointment of those covering the Obama campaign, Biden seems to have cleaned up his act.  For now.
• In Minnesota, a Democratic state legislator from Duluth named Kerry Gauthier got caught having sex with a 17-year old boy at a rest stop.  No charges were filed because the minor was at the age of consent, but it does look bad to voters when you're running for re-election.  Gauthier, who threatened to take the Akin route and stay in the race, later decided to drop out as well to admit to his own homosexuality.

Whether you want to blame Isaac's arrival as divine intervention or Democratic meddling, it's the Republicans who have the most to lose if the storm gets bad enough that the convention has to be either shortened or canceled.  Does anyone really want to see Mitt Romney make his acceptance speech from inside a storm shelter at an undisclosed location?

Politics 2012: No Third Option

Ross Perot at the United States Department of Veterans Affairs. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Something's missing from this year's presidential election.  For the first time since 1988, there is no major third party candidate to challenge Democratic President Barack Obama and Republican nominees Mitt Romney.

You might remember Ross Perot, who used his millions to make two runs at the White House in 1992 and '96.  Or Ralph Nader, whom the Democrats will never forgive for helping the Supreme Court hand the Presidency to George W. Bush in 2000 (Nader also ran in 2004 and '08).

This would have been a good year for a third party candidate.  People who voted for Obama in 2008 have been disappointed in the way he's turned out.  Conservatives aren't too happy with Romney, either.  In a poll taken by USA Today and Gallup in 12 swing states, the President holds a narrow lead over Romney 47 to 44 percent.  However, when asked the classic political question "are you better off now than you were four years ago?", 56 percent of respondents said they were not.

Instead, it's been all talk and little action.  Donald Trump made noises about running, but ultimately decided to back Romney.  Ron Paul has his fans, but his "libertarian" stance has ticked off real Libertarians.  All we have thus far is Roseanne Barr running on the Peace and Freedom ticket.

There are several reasons why third-party candidates are out of favor right now.  First, campaigns have gotten too expensive for anyone but a Republican or a Democrat to even attempt, unless you are someone like Perot.  You need to start raising money the moment the election's over, or so it seems.  Second, the major parties have successfully convinced the public that a vote for a third-party candidate all but assures that the wrong person will get into the White House.  Third, the way our political system is currently structured, most third parties tend to be short-lived.  Finally, since third parties are basically offshoots of the Republicans or the Democrats, are their candidates really saying anything different?

So for those of you wishing there was an alternative to Obama or Romney, there are plenty of candidates from smaller parties out there who would love to have your vote.   Just don't get the idea that they're anywhere near electable.

Paul Ryan: Romney's Hope

Official portrait of Congressman . (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

On a Saturday morning in mid-August, aboard the USS Wisconsin while docked in Virginia, Republican presidential nominee-in-waiting Mitt Romney introduced his new running mate Paul Ryan as "the next President of the United States".

Some conservatives wish that were true.  Ryan, a seven-term congressman from Wisconsin, is actually running for vice-president.  He's really there to take the pressure off of Romney's shortcomings as a candidate, making him more palatable to Tea Partiers.

Unless you seriously follow politics, chances are real good that you've never heard of Ryan.  Behold:  He's 42, hails from Janesville, Wisconsin (a town close to the Illinois border), reads Ayn Rand (author of "Atlas Shrugged", "The Fountainhead" and other conservative tomes), listens to Led Zeppelin (who once recorded "Dazed and Confused"), and follows the party line on social issues (pro-life, anti-gay marriage, etc.).

Ryan's main focus as a member of Congress is the federal deficit, being chairman of the House Budget Committee as well as serving on the Ways and Means Committee.  He has sponsored bills in the past that would reduce the size of government, but would always get shot down by Democrats.  The budget Ryan is now proposing isn't all that much different from President Barack Obama's plan, except that Medicare and Medicaid would be gutted and military spending would not be touched.

It's the part about government health care that's raising red flags for the Romney-Ryan ticket.  Seniors and ordinary folk in a major swing state like Florida (and perhaps elsewhere) aren't thrilled that the GOP duo wants to cut billions of dollars at their expense and getting little in return, while billionaires get more tax breaks.

Meanwhile, Tim Pawlenty has once again been passed over for the vice-presidential slot.  Could it be that Romney took one look at Pawlenty's record as governor of Minnesota, then decided he could do better by naming someone else?

With Ryan now on board the Romney train, some pundits believe we're going to have a substantive discussion about America's financial future during this campaign.  Or will we?  As long as both candidates' PACs fling mud in each other's TV commercials, and as long as there isn't an international crisis, don't count on it.

Will Paul Ryan help or hurt Mitt Romney's chances of unseating President Obama in November?  Well, Ryan's no Sarah Palin, for which conservatives should be thankful.  But the more people get to know about Ryan's plans to reshape government at the expense of the middle class, the less they're going to like.  Other than that, only time will tell.

Politics 2012: Travels With Mitt Romney

Romney (Photo credit: Talk Radio News Service)

When you're running for President of the United States, it's almost mandatory to take a trip overseas and burnish your foreign policy credentials by visiting some of America's allies, and maybe sneak over to a military base to greet the troops.  And when you get back home, you're hoping the voters will see you in a different light.

Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney did make that trip, with stops in London, Israel and Poland.  He came home looking like a fool.

• In England, Romney didn't think much of London's preparations for the Olympic Games.  This comes from a man who ran the scandal-plagued 2002 Winter Games in Salt Lake City, which British prime minister David Cameron considered the "middle of nowhere".
• In Israel before a group of donors, Romney claimed that the country's culture is the reason why they have an economic advantage over the Palestinians.  Actually, pressure from the Israeli military has more to do with why most Palestinians can't seem to earn a living.

To be sure, Romney had a much better time of it in Poland, where President Barack Obama is not as popular as he used to be.  But the damage has already been done.  Throw in some stiff-arming of the American media who were covering his trip, including an aide who told reporters to "kiss my ass", and there you have it.


As Romney awaits his anointment as the GOP's standard bearer in Tampa, Florida a few weeks from now, he has some work to do to convince folks that he can be a better President than Obama.  A recent CBS News/New York Times poll indicates that the current President has a slight lead in the battleground states of Ohio, Florida and Pennsylvania.

Another mark against Romney is his transparency (or lack of it) when it comes to his business dealings.  He doesn't say much about his time at Bain Capital, a private equity firm.  He has also yet to release his federal tax returns for the last couple of years, leading some Democrats to speculate there's a lot more he's hiding.

And Romney has yet to make his vice-presidential choice, though one would think he'd wait until after the Olympics and before the convention to do that.  From what we've been hearing, none of the rumored candidates have a remote resemblance to Sarah Palin.

But don't count Romney out.  He reminds us of another Republican candidate who said outrageous things and didn't make too many friends outside the United States.  His name was George W. Bush.  He was elected to two terms.