Editor's Pick

Yes, Palin Did Stop That Bridge
By JIM DEMINT
September 10, 2008

"But, you know, when you've been taking all these earmarks when it's convenient, and then suddenly you're the champion anti-earmark person, that's not change. Come on! I mean, words mean something, you can't just make stuff up." -- Barack Obama, Sept. 6, 2008

In politics, words are cheap. What really counts are actions. Democrats and Republicans have talked about fiscal responsibility for years. In reality, both parties have a shameful record of wasting hundreds of billions of tax dollars on pork-barrel projects.

My Senate colleague Barack Obama is now attacking Gov. Sarah Palin over earmarks. Having worked with both John McCain and Mr. Obama on earmarks, and as a recovering earmarker myself, I can tell you that Mrs. Palin's leadership and record of reform stands well above that of Mr. Obama.

Let's compare.

Mrs. Palin used her veto pen to slash more local projects than any other governor in the state's history. She cut nearly 10% of Alaska's budget this year, saving state residents $268 million. This included vetoing a $30,000 van for Campfire USA and $200,000 for a tennis court irrigation system. She succinctly justified these cuts by saying they were "not a state responsibility."

Here's a copy of the President's proclamation:

THE WHITE HOUSE Office of the Press

By the President of the United States of America a proclamation

September 11, 2001, was etched into America's memory when 19 terrorists attacked us with barbarity unequaled in our history. On Patriot Day, we cherish the memory of the thousands of innocent victims lost, extend our thoughts and prayers to their families, and honor the heroic men and women who risked and sacrificed their lives so others might survive.

There is a movement today that seeks to have "In God We Trust" taken off of our American currency. Those heading the move say that putting God on our money violates the separation of church and state championed by Thomas Jefferson. This movement says that the founders of our country were not really Christians or godly men. They often use Thomas Jefferson as an example. However, there was not a single member of the Continental Congress that did not acknowledge Jesus Christ as God and God as their protector. The Congress even funded the printing of 20,000 copies of the Bible after King George began an embargo against Bibles being imported into the American Colonies. George Washington wrote a letter of gratitude to the printer for the effort.

When guns are banned in schools, only the students and the crazed in the community carry them for nefarious purposes. Violence throughout the planet is increasing. School violence is escalating. Assaults on teachers are commonplace. Boys are bolder, girls are growing more aggressive. Angry students in their rage concoct lethal schemes to carry out deplorable plots.

The Sword of Damocles dangles over the heads of unsuspecting students. Meanwhile, school administrators and teachers are armed with verbal skills, “Why don’t we all just get along.” Education courses teach them in matters of class disruption, to acquiesce, understand, write up what happened, describe the atmosphere in the classroom, what they could have done to prevent the violence, and what they plan to do in the future to prevent its reoccurrence.

Education gurus have backed teachers into the corner and put a dunce cap on their heads in front of the students. They have been put at the mercy of the most belligerent and whatever happens, “it’s their fault.”

The next step in school anarchy will be a “step up” in violence. Guns and knives will become weapons of choice. Assault rifles and shot guns will suffice for the more sophisticated shooters.