FAIR AND BIASED: Iowa, SOTU, & Acquittal Dominate Headlines!

Sunday, February 9, 2020

Iowa, SOTU, & Acquittal Dominate Headlines!

HISTORICAL HEADLINES!

by Steve Fair

Last week’s news headlines were historic. On Monday, Iowa held their quadrennial presidential caucuses. Both the Republicans and Democrats use the caucus system in Iowa. A caucus is an indirect election. Instead of registered voters going to their normal polling place and casting a secret vote in a voting booth, in a caucus system, registered voters meet and publicly vote and the results determine the number of delegates each party's national convention will receive from their respective state.

There are strengths and weaknesses in both the presidential primary and caucus systems. Some GOP activists in Oklahoma would like for the Sooner state to return to a caucus system. Tuesday morning’s headline was ‘No Results Available from Iowa.’ Using an app to count votes that appeared to fail, the Iowa Democrat leadership could not provide final results until late in the week, which means Iowa may not be going first in the presidential process in four years.

After 72 hours, it appeared former South Bend, IN Mayor Peter Paul Buttigieg, 38, and Sen. Bernie Sanders, (I-VT) tied in the Hawkeye state. Former Vice President Joe Biden finished a distance fourth. After Buttigieg and Sanders’ victory and Biden’s poor showing, James Carville, a well-known Democrat operative said: “The turnout in the Iowa caucus was below what we expected. Trump’s approval rating is probably as high as it’s been. This is very bad and now it appears the Party can’t even count votes. The purpose of a political party is to acquire power. All right? Without power, nothing matters. We are talking about the wrong things,” Carville concluded.

On Tuesday evening, President Trump delivered what could be his best speech ever at the State of the Union. Under indictment by the U.S. House with Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi sitting directly behind him, Trump stuck to the teleprompter and masterfully presented the case for his re-election. But Pelosi dominated Wednesday’s headline after she ‘ripped up’ a copy of Trump’s speech.

Thursday’s headline was ‘Trump Acquitted,’ after Wednesday afternoon’s vote by the U.S. Senate vindicated the president on two counts; abuse of power and obstruction of Congress. The vote was along Party lines with only Sen. Mitt Romney, (R-Utah), voting with the Democrats on the abuse of power charge. Three lessons from this week’s news banners:

First, it is past time to rethink Iowa kicking off the presidential cycle. Rotate the starting state around. And if Democrats can’t count votes, how are they going to govern?

Second, Pelosi’s stunt was beneath the dignity of her office and will probably not appeal to the swing voters Democrats need to win close elections. So much for going high when your opponent goes low.

Third, the impeachment/trial process is political, not legal. The Democrat leadership knew they could not remove Trump from office when they started this boondoggle, but they plowed ahead anyway.

Will Rogers said, “All I know is just what I read in the papers, and that’s an alibi for my ignorance.” This week news readers had historic headlines to keep them ignorant.

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Why FAIR & BIASED?

FAIR- because that's my name and BIASED because the truth is we are all biased- either for something or against it. What's important is that our bias(opinions) are based on right- on absolute truth and not on changing values. What's right cannot change based on a change in circumstances. That is the basis for situational ethics.

Situation Ethics is a theory that is concerned with the outcome or consequences of an action; the end, as opposed to an action being intrinsically wrong. In the case of situation ethics, the end can justify the means. There are no absolutes. Your actions are guided only by your conscience.

A person's view of right can be subjective. But there is a way mankind can definitely know what's right and that is revealed in God's Word- the Bible. As His creatures, we should be biased toward things our Creator is for and biased against those things He is against. May God grant us the grace and understanding to know the difference.

PARTY AFFILIATION IS IMPORTANT! by Steve Fair- written in 2009

How important is political party affiliation? Some people mistakenly believe only politicians need political affiliation, which they use for support to get elected. They contend the electorate or voters, do not need to be aligned with any Party. These same people often state they “support the man, not the Party.” But whether they recognize it or not, they are supporting a party when they “support the man.”
Most of the Founding Fathers had a negative view of political parties. In his farewell address to the nation, George Washington warned about political parties saying, “However [political parties] may now and then answer popular ends, they are likely in the course of time and things, to become potent engines, by which cunning, ambitious, and unprincipled men will be enabled to subvert the power of the people and to usurp for themselves the reins of government, destroying afterwards the very engines which have lifted them to unjust dominion.” In spite of Washington's warning, political parties were formed anyway.
From 1796 to 1828 the first political parties were formed. Starting with the Federalists and Anti-Federalists, two opposing factions arose. Each was concerned with how the new government was to be organized. The Federalists believed in a strong central government. Their philosophy and beliefs would closely mirror the Democrat Party today. The Anti-Federalists strongly supported the rights of the states. They would more closely align with Republicans today.
Since the mid 1800s, the Ds and Rs have been the two major political parties in our country. Political parties flourished in our government mainly for legislative organization and expediencies sake. Why is Party affiliation important for the average voter? Party affiliation is important for three very simples reasons.
First, party affiliation is the first vote a citizen casts. When a citizen registers as a Democrat, then they are aligning philosophically with the values, beliefs, tenets, and positions of the Democrats on the issues. Party affiliation “defines” you are and what you stand for. It should be taken as seriously as a vote for a specific candidate. Research what each Party stands for, their positions on issues, and then align with the Party that is closest to your values. Copies of both major Party platforms are available on-line or at the local library.
Second, legislatures organize themselves and conduct business using party affiliation. The legislative branch of government is the most powerful arm of the three branches of government. Legislative bodies hold closed meeting of party members, called a caucus to decide on questions of policy or leadership. The Republicans hold a caucus meeting and the Democrats hold a caucus meeting-both at the state and federal level. Unfortunately, conservative, moderate and liberal philosophies do not hold caucus meetings or control the legislative agendas- parties do. When someone says they vote for “the man,” not the party, they fail to understand the power and function of a caucus system in a legislative body. The Party in the majority controls appointments, Chairmanships, the agenda and countless other things through the caucus.
Third, party affiliation should be a matter of conviction, not convenience. Often, people align with a party so they can vote in primary elections or based on family tradition or geographies. Even candidates will align, file and run affiliated with a Party they have little philosophical agreement with. That decision is made out of convenience, not conviction. While no political party is perfect or has all the answers, there is a distinct difference between the two major parties and honest citizens should align with the Party that reflects their convictions.
The Democrat Party is more liberal than the Republican Party. Liberals believe in more government control of business, the environment and speech, using large bureaucratic programs to address real or perceived social ills and constant reinterpretation of the Constitution. Liberals are more inclined to trust government than the people themselves. They see the role of government as a great provider of goods and services and have little faith in the individual to solve his own problems.
Republicans are more conservative than Democrats. Conservatives believe in less government control of the environment and business. They want fewer and less comprehensive government programs to address real or perceived social ills. They believe in personal responsibility and trust individuals to make decisions for themselves. Republicans believe in a strict literal interpretation of the Constitution. A person should find out which of these philosophies best fits their view if they wish to actively participate in the political process.
Party affiliation is important. Washington’s prophecy has come to past, and political parties have been used to empower “unprincipled men,” on both sides of the aisle, but like it or not, political parties are a reality in our system of government. Each concerned citizen should evaluate the philosophy, values, beliefs and tenets of each Party and align their party affiliation accordingly.

FAIR AND BIASED

Sunday, February 9, 2020

Iowa, SOTU, & Acquittal Dominate Headlines!

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PARTY AFFILIATION IS IMPORTANT! by Steve Fair- written in 2009

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