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Feb. 8, 2013
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Jewish World Review
May 31, 2011/ 27 Iyar, 5771
If I Were President
By
Arnold Ahlert
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http://www.JewishWorldReview.com |
There's an episode of the old cartoon Popeye where girlfriend Olive Oyl sings a song entitled, "If I Were President." In keeping with that spirit, a very short list, in no particular order, of what I would attempt to achieve with four years in the Oval Office:
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With respect to Israel: I would make it clear we're tired of the international tap dance and its anti-Semitic overtones. Israel is our BFF and those Arab nations who refuse to recognize its existence will be weaned off the foreign aid teat ASAP. As for the "peace" flotilla headed towards Gaza in June, it wouldn't be the Israeli Navy boarding and inspecting the ships. It would be the U.S. Navy.
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With respect to Islamic terror in general: we would no longer interested in winning hearts and minds, or nation building, or engaging in politically correct warfare. Anything considered a threat to America's national security would be met will lethal and devastating force. Once the threat was eliminated, the troops would come home. The threat re-appears? So would we.
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Energy: as a result of the above reality, an historically unprecedented and massive push for energy independence would be undertaken via executive order by the Commander-in-Chief responding to one of the primary threats to our national security. Why an executive order? To eliminate enviro lawsuits, like the one that just stopped Shell oil from drilling in Alaska. This nation is quite capable of being both environmentally responsible and energy intensive, without being held hostage by people who think driving a Prius makes them morally superior. Those who want to live like a cavemen would be free to do so. Those who wish to live in the 21st century would be equally free to do so.
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Our borders: same executive order, same reason. Heaven help the first sitting president who has to tell the American public that the terrorist who just killed thousands of our fellow citizens, snuck into the country across our unsecured southern border. There would be no "vested interests" in either party who would be allowed to compromise our nation's sovereignty for any reason.
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The budget: my administration would begin with the very simple premise that the most effective government is one that works from the local level outward, not the federal, command-and-control level inward. In keeping with that premise, some Cabinet-level Departments, such as Education and Energy, would be axed. My administration would get rid of the practice, wherever feasible, of states sending money to Washington, D.C., only to have federal bureaucrats siphon their"vig" off the top before sending it back. That's nothing more than a federal power grab, and it's inefficient to the max. I would convene a national conference of both small and big business owners, aka the people who actually work for a living, and have them tell the politicians what it takes to get the economy moving again not the other way around as is currently occurring. I would televise the entire thing.
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Next, my administration would lower tax rates across the board. Can't figure out why companies "outsource" jobs? So would you, if the government was making it next to impossible to stay here. I would de-regulate for the same reason, with one caveat: no more wrist-slap, he's suffered enough sentences for those who game the system. If you do the crime under my administration, you would do the time big time.
Next, I would dig the Grace Commission Report out of mothballs and start working on its recommendations for cutting spending. I would really go through the budget line by line, item by item, and once again televise the ongoing procedures. I'm betting it would be one of the more compelling "reality shows" ever broadcast. My administration would also make sure the public is well aware of who sponsored what "pet program" that lives on like a vampire, sucking the lifeblood out of the American taxpayer.
Speaking of taxpayers, I would institute another national conversation regarding tax reform, one vested with an energy and determination required by a country on the brink of bankruptcy. Whatever reforms are adopted, one principle would be part of the equation: everyone would pay income, consumption or "fair" taxes, even if the lowest bracket is one percent. The days of nearly half the country subsidizing the other half, aka the "free lunch" fiasco which is the best way to insure that government spending never gets under control would be over.
• States' rights: it's been a long time since Americans understood why this country is called the United Statesof America. Fifty separate constituencies would be given maximum freedom to innovate, to compete, and do anything else to improve the lives of their citizens without the heavy hand of Washington, D.C. interfering. Government works best when it satisfies the greatest number of people as often as possible. Americans understood that for most of their history. Re-teaching that lesson would be a priority under my administration.
• Overall leadership: two things come to mind. First, I would give new life to the idea that America is the greatest nation on earth. Just as importantly, I would communicate that message in no uncertain terms to the American public. No one did it better than Ronald Reagan, and my administration would strive to get that "shining city on a hill" message to resonate once again. The contemptuous notion endorsed by progressives and the current president that American exceptionalism is the same as every other country's exceptionalism is utter crap, best expressed by a comedian who once remarked, "30 million illegals can't be wrong." Every aspect of our greatness is still intact, save one: we're no longer communicating the wonders of America and the greatness of our Constitution to our children. That's a national embarrassment. I would do everything in my power as president to change that equation.
Second, under my administration, the notion that government must cater to the lowest common denominator of human behavior would be deader than the proverbial door nail. The "no-expectations" approach to governance has been an unmitigated disaster. Good government shouldn't dictate behavior, but it can sure as hell raise the bar regarding what's acceptable and what's not. When Bill Clinton signed on to welfare reform in 1995 we were told people would never adjust and there would be mayhem. They adjusted. The bet here is the overwhelming majority of Americans would also adjust to other expectations regarding decent behavior as well. Why is this important? Because we're currently learning a painful lesson: no country can survive if most of its citizens are corrupt. My administration would confront such corruption head-on.
That's about it for now. A rant? To be sure, but one that gives me a bit of a cathartic feeling. I'm sure Olive Oyl felt the same way.
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Comment on JWR Contributor Arnold Ahlert's column, by clicking here.
Previously:
05/25/11: California Dreamin'
05/23/11: On Wisconsin!
05/20/11: Obama's Farewell to Israel Speech
05/16/11: Krauthammering Amnesty
05/11/11: Bounce, My Backside
05/09/11: The Epicenter of Progressive Contempt for the Rule of Law
05/03/11: SEALing Osama's Fate
05/02/11: The Education plantation
04/24/11: The Bell May Toll for Jersey Toll Collectors
04/19/11: From Medical Dependency to Dependency on the Welfare State
04/14/11: Trumping the Debate
04/06/11: It Takes a Bigot to Expose a Death Cult
04/04/11: Charlie and Snookie --- and Barack
03/30/11: Disabling America, One Lawsuit at a Time
03/28/11: The MSM Kills the Kill Team Story
03/23/11: Another Military Scandal
03/21/11: Barry, Joe, Helen and Wisconsin Teachers
03/16/11: The Inevitable Viability of Conservatism
03/14/11: Progressives in Their Own Words
03/09/11: $61 Billion in Cuts --- Vs. $223 Billion in One Month of Spending
03/07/11: Bean Bag B.S.
03/02/11: A Green Catastrophe in the Making
02/28/11: Ain't Noting Like the Real Thing
02/23/11: Progressive Rot vs. the ROTC
02/21/11: Wisconsin: Progressivism in All its Ugly Glory
02/18/11: News reporters --- or Narrative Shapers?
02/16/11: The Presidents Budget Proposal: An Obamination of Progressive Profligacy
02/14/11: Only Another 9/11 Will Alter the Illegal Immigration Status Quo
02/10/11: Is O'Reilly losing his touch or is he just irresponsible?
02/07/11: Tossing Britain Under the Bus
02/03/11: Starving the World In Order to Save It
01/31/11: Walking the Middle East Tightrope
01/27/11: Small-scale Terrorist Attacks: Big Strategy?
01/24/11: Jeffery Immelt: A Crony Capitalist In Charge of Job Creation
01/20/11: An Intimate Prime-time Interview
01/17/11: Progressives: Always Angry, Newly Desperate
01/12/11: Twain vs. the Totalitarians
01/10/11: Politically Correct Passports?
01/05/11: Showdown at the Fiscal Corral
01/03/11: Reading the Constitution Aloud is a Good Start
12/30/10: Getting Our Moral Mojo Back
12/27/10: PC Airport Safety is an Oxymoron
12/23/10: Getting America Back On Track
12/20/10: A Collectivist Coalition of Convenience
12/15/10: The President Who Wasn't There
12/13/10: Tech-No!
12/08/10: A Lethal Military, Inclusive or Not
12/06/10: The Unexpected Consequences of Progressivism
12/01/10: Leakers and Losers
11/29/10: We Won, Part One
11/22/10: Keep Your Hands Off My Constitution
11/17/10: Grope and Change
11/14/10: Taking Back Our Country, One School At a Time
11/11/10: Checks (and Balances), Please
11/08/10: Curtain Up, Progressives Down
11/04/10: Last Chance, Republicans
11/01/10: By Their Own Words Shall Ye Know Them
10/28/10: Progressive Determination to Undermine American Elections
10/25/10: Shock, but more importantly, action: De-Unionize Public Schools now
10/20/10: Multiculturalism? Check, Please
10/18/10: Healthcare: Alice in Wonderland vs. The Constitution
10/11/10: Vote for Restoring the Rule of Law in November
10/11/10: Dems: Running From Clarity
10/07/10: Hypersensitive Hogwash
10/04/10: Comprehensive Con Artists
09/29/10: Why Dems Are Going Down in November
09/27/10: The Unholiest of Unholy Alliances
09/22/10: Two Words for Republicans to Remember: I Won
09/20/10: Purging Me First Politicians
09/17/10: No More Lesser of Two Evils
09/15/10: Recovery Arms Race
09/13/10: Bigots in the Majority --- Again?
09/09/10: Giving Voters Something to Vote For
09/07/10: Irresponsible Dems, Incomprehensible Bills
09/02/10: War Weary Americans vs. Implacable Islamists
08/31/10: A Dream Debased
08/25/10: American Bigots Versus Media Propagandists
08/23/10: Recovery Bummer
08/19/10: An Unholy Alliance of Radicals
08/16/10: You've Lost America, Mr. President
08/13/10: The Twin Towers of Progressive Disconnect
08/11/10: A Far Better National Discussion
08/09/10: It's Only One Dead Nun
08/06/10: Incremental Tyranny
08/04/10: Ground Zero Mosque: Context Counts
08/02/10: The Arizona Ruling: a Gift for November
07/29/10: The United Cities of America
07/26/10: JournoList: Coordinated Ideological Bankruptcy
07/20/10: Go For Broke Or Get Out of the Way
07/14/10: You're a Liberal/Progressive if You Believe…
07/12/10: $33-an-hour--For Sleeping On the Job
07/08/10: Extortionist Government
07/06/10: Commerce Clause Totalitarians
07/01/10: Another Public School Travesty in MA
06/30/10: Calling YOUR Bluff, Mr. President
06/28/10: A Trifecta of Progressive Corruption
06/23/10: Plug the Darn Hole --- In Our Border
06/21/10: Our Empty-Suit-in-Chief
06/16/10: Betraying Our Children
06/14/10: Who Gets the Benefit of the Doubt?
06/07/10: Politically Correct Warfare
06/01/10: Bill Maher's Black President
05/25/10: A Mosque At Ground Zero
05/23/10: Libs Stand Tall --- For Mexico
05/19/10: The 'Unintended Consequences' of Liberalism
05/17/10: 'Los' Suns: Stuck on Stupido
05/12/10: Union Audacity: Yes We Will!
05/10/10: Greeks, Leaks and and Double-Speak
05/05/10: Twelve Million Illegals --- or Thirty?
05/02/10: Republicans: Playing Not to Lose Doesn't Cut It
04/28/10: Arizona: Progressivism's Waterloo?
04/26/10: Son of Amnesty
04/22/10: Mortgages and Moral Meltdowns
04/20/10: Bashing Christians Or Gays?
04/15/10: Personal Integri-tea
04/12/10: Fools, Tools and Ghouls
04/08/10: (Tea) Party On
04/05/10: The Triumph of Mediocrity
04/02/10: Two For the Road
03/29/10: The Innate Immorality of Liberalism
03/24/10: The Art of War
03/22/10: I Want My Country Back
03/18/10: A Perpetual Process
03/17/10: American Exhibitionists
03/15/10: A Light Bulb Moment of Clarity
03/10/10: Little Things Mean A Lot
02/03/10: Budgetary Fork in the Road
02/01/10: Liberal Economic Illiteracy
01/27/10: Roe-ing and Wade-ing Back to Reason
01/25/10: Arrogance When Up, Denial When Down
01/20/10: Connecting the Educational Dots
01/19/10: The Next Tea Party?
01/15/10: The Myth That Keeps on Giving
01/13/10: Airport Security Begins Away From the Airport
01/11/10: Secrets and Lies
01/08/10: Embracing Bigotry or Rejecting Bullying?
01/06/10: Hanging by an Ideological Thread
01/04/10: Our Wonderama Bureaucracy
12/30/09: A Day Off
12/28/09: Dangerous Myths
12/25/09: I, Me, Mine
12/23/09: A Very Harry Christmas
12/21/09: My Opinon
12/18/09: The Party of Repeal
12/15/09: Privileged Exemption
11/30/09: Settled Science and Unsettled Children
11/30/09: American Sharia Law
11/23/09:The Trial (Travesty) of the Century
11/04/09: American Vampires and Their Political Enablers
11/01/09: Opting Out of Insanity?
10/28/09: Cell Phones Cause Brain Cancer. Brain Required
10/26/09: Communism: Nazism With Better PR
10/21/09: Just Asking
10/16/09: Cost Projections vs. Actual Costs, or Hope and Change vs. Reality
10/14/09: News you can use …
10/07/09: Incremental Insidiousness
10/05/09: MIA: Common Sense and Common Decency
09/30/09: Iran: Bad Options and Unpreparedness
09/21/09: Crying Racism: the Last Refuge of Scoundrels
09/11/09: 9/11 Cannot Be Sanitized
09/08/09: Truthers and Consequences
09/01/09: A Paper Trail Challenge for the Mainstream Media
08/31/09: Drowning in Amorality
08/26/09: The Republican Recovery Program
© 2011, Arnold Ahlert
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