RNC Convention

A month or two ago, I said I wasn’t voting for George W. Bush this time around. I gave the reasoning here and don’t feel like getting into it again. If you want to read it, here it is.

Let me tell you why I voted for him the first time. He came across to me as a sincere, honest man. One who shared many of my same beliefs, though not all.

After the attacks on Sept 11(let’s not call them “events or trajedies,” ok?), I saw a deeper side of him, as many of us did. I saw a man who truly did feel the pain that America felt at the time. I saw man who risked his own safety by showing up at ground zero a few days later. Keep in mind, the Secret Service had no way to secure that area at the time. And during the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, I saw a man who valued the US Military highly. Very highly. I’ve seen him get choked up, talking about the sacrifices he’s asked them to make. He understands the sacrifices he’s asked them to make on behalf of the country. He knows, because of his orders, some will not come home. Some children are losing fathers (in some cases daughters), parents are losing sons, sisters are losing brothers and many are losing friends. He understands that. He risked his own safety to be there for Thanksgiving. He’s conveyed his message to the troops. And we LOVE him for it. We do.

I’d already decided to vote for the Libertarian before President Bush’s speech last night. I wasn’t even planning on watching the speech. Most of those speeches are boring and predictable. If there was something special, I could always watch it on www.gop.com. I did that with Zel Miller’s speech. I suggest you do, too, if you missed it.

But there I was getting into bed and it was on, so I left it on. The beginning and middle were pretty much standard fare. Then the President started speaking about the sacrifices made by firemen, cops and the military during and after Sept 11th:

"These four years have brought moments I could not foresee and will not forget. I have tried to comfort Americans who lost the most on Sept. 11th -- people who showed me a picture or told me a story, so I would know how much was taken from them. I have learned first-hand that ordering Americans into battle is the hardest decision, even when it is right. I have returned the salute of wounded soldiers, some with a very tough road ahead, who say they were just doing their job. I've held the children of the fallen, who are told their dad or mom is a hero, but would rather just have their dad or mom. And I have met with parents and wives and husbands who have received a folded flag, and said a final goodbye to a soldier they loved. I am awed that so many have used those meetings to say that I am in their prayers -- to offer encouragement to me. Where does strength like that come from? How can people so burdened with sorrow also feel such pride? It is because they know their loved one was last seen doing good. Because they know that liberty was precious to the one they lost. And in those military families, I have seen the character of a great nation: decent, and idealistic, and strong."

As he spoke of the folded flags, his eyes got glassy and he choked up. This is a man who understands the sacrifices of the men in uniform that he has ordered into war. I can’t explain how much this means to the men he has ordered. But if you want to know, just ask one.

Tonight, President Bush tossed my vote back into the undecided category and I’m struggling with it. I don’t vote on emotion. And my logical side says he shouldn’t get my vote. But there are two other issues:

1. There is no other issue more important in this campaign than the War on Terror. None. And the idea of Senator Kerry running it should scare the bejeezus out of everyone.

2. This man values the military. Sure, he didn’t serve in Vietnam (as his reprehensible opponent likes to point out) but at least he values the men who do serve. This President never would have come back and slandered his “band of brothers” by lying and accusing them of war crimes. Kerry is a despicable man. President Bush, for all of his faults, values me and the men I serve with and the sacrifices they make.

These next 60 days are going to be interesting. But a couple of predictions:

1. This election won't be close. Barring a scandal in the Bush White House, President Bush will win re-election by a margin close to his father's over Dukakis.

2. Kerry will continue to implode and the crazy lefties who support him will follow that lead. These people are off the deep end and they're going t get worse. Which is actually good news for the President. Most of America needs to see how far left and out of touch that wing of the Democratic Party is.

3. President Bush will trounce him in the debates. Not because he's necessarily smarter and a better speaker. I don't know about the former but the latter is definitely in Kerry's favor. Who would you rather sit and have a beer with? That's important in the debates because they are all about presentation. I could sit all day and hang out w/ the President. 5 minutes around Kerry would have me wanting to kick him in the nuts or shoot myself in the head.

Kerry really is a *terrible* candidate. But it will be run to watch him destroy himself. Howard Dean would have been more fun.