America Has Spoken - Get Over It!

As you might have guessed from the title, this will not be a typical "Righting America" offering. And unlike many of my fellow Conservative/Republican bloggers, I will not waste time and energy making excuses for a gaggle of politicians who, as a party, got what they deserved. Newt Gingrich's "Contract with America" was full of promise and gave Americans something to hope for. This promise, while kept by some, was broken by most. The "Grand Old Party" lost its focus and became drunk with its own power.

This is not to say that the Democrats are better. This election was not won by the rudderless and nagging Democratic party - it was lost by the GOP, plain and simple.

Let me recount an epiphany I had whilst driving to work this morning. As I listened to C-Span on my radio, I was completely taken aback by many of the Republican callers and their reactions to this election. Caller after caller bitterly vilified the victorious Democratic candidates - stating that they hoped the new Republican Minority would punish the new Democratic Majority by stalling evey single initiative, vote or bill put forward by them. Frankly, this pissed me off. It is, in my estimation, the very LAST thing we should do.

I am not making excuses for Democratic behavior over these past six years - far from it. The word "Filibuster" is now a recognizable word in the American lexicon precisely because of minority abuses. But the way I see it, that was THEN and this is NOW. It is time for our fractured country to move on.

Nancy Pelosi, whether being disingenuous or not (time will tell), said exactly the right things today. Don't faint - yeah, I said it! She called repeatedly for partisanship, swore up and down that she would pursue a good working relationship with the President and new Minority, and emphatically stated that impeachment of President Bush is not on the table. She even referred to him as "our President." Now, I may very well be calling for her head next week (or next month or next year), but for now she actually managed to impress me with that sentiment.

President Bush, for his part, also showed a great deal of class and leadership today. He called "Speaker-Elect Pelosi" to congratulate her and to invite her to lunch tomorrow. And then, he announced the resignation of SECDEF Donald Rumsfeld - a gesture not lost on the new congressional leadership.

There is an old saying, "Be careful what you wish for." This can well be applied to the new Democratic Majority in the House (and probably the Senate, after the final tally). Pelosi and Co have now taken shared ownership of the Iraq War and other major issues. They have made grand promises, and it will be a huge burden for them to prove their worthiness over the next two years. In the 2008 Elections, if they are not very careful and effective, it could be their undoing. Again.

Like all of us, I am many things. In my case I would list it this way: Citizen of the World, Family Man, American Patriot, Conservative Republican and Blogger....pretty much in that order. Of course, I left out other stuff like "Veteran" and "Great Guy" but you all knew that already!

My point in listing all of this? Simple: I would rather see us succeed - as a world and as a nation - than worry about which politicians got us there. If the Democrats and Republicans can jointly figure out a better way to fight the War on Terror, promote world peace, secure our borders, maintain our robust economy, protect civil rights, provide decent and affordable education and health care, reduce our oil dependency...hey, I'M THERE.

If they can find a way to bring our brave troops home - not sudden cut-and-run but VICTORIOUS - then I will sing their praises right here on this blog.

As depicted in the image above, I have crossed halfway over this bridge - if for no other reason, to see what the other side offers. Why not? Here is their chance with me and other realistic, like-minded people...and I honestly hope they don't blow it.