2016 Begins – Dr. Ben Carson Announced as first Republican Presidential Candidate

ABC News is reporting that Dr. Ben Carsonis the first Republican Candidate for the GOP Nomination.

Carson, a famous pediatric neurosurgeon and conservative political star, will air a nearly 40 minute-long ad introducing himself to the American people this weekend, an aide to Carson confirms to ABC News.

The documentary titled “A Breath of Fresh Air: A New Prescription for America” will air in 22 states and Washington, DC. The paid video will detail some of his biography and family life, including his rise from being born to a single mother with a poor childhood in Detroit to director of pediatric neurosurgery at Johns Hopkins for almost 40 years, known for his work separating conjoined twins, to potential 2016 presidential candidate.

How 6 Potential 2016 GOP Presidential Candidates Fared on the Campaign Trail Carson first became a conservative star when last year he created a buzz at the National Prayer Breakfast when in front of an audience that included President Obama and Vice President Joe Biden spoke out about political correctness, health care and taxes.

He also called for a private health care savings plan and a flat tax in a speech that went viral and led to an editorial in the Wall Street Journal titled Ben Carson for President. He is known as a fierce opponent of the president’s health care law known as Obamacare.

In an ABC News/Washington Post poll from last month of the potential 2016 presidential candidates showed Carson in seventh place garnering seven percent of the vote after other notables including Jeb Bush, Mike Huckabee, Chris Christie, and Marco Rubio.

(ABC News)

This announcement makes the 2016 GOP potential slate of candidates a lot more interesting!

The Nation Rises – GOP Control’s House, Senate, Governors Seats – More GOP Women, More First, More Diversity

It was one heck of a night of recrimination against all things progressive given the overwhelming defeat of Progressive Democrats nationwide, and in places that were considered sacrosanct to the Party.

The Washington Post suggests the credit belongs to the Republican GOP Machine, however, one might suggest that the credit belongs to the voters and possibly the Progressives themselves who’s policies have wrought destruction for millions.. Looking at the maps, the nation, divided into blue and red, appears to be heading more towards a Reagan landslide (which was populist)

Favorite victories: Charlie Baker, new governor of Massachusetts(WWLP), Tim Scott, First African American elected to the South Carolina Senate(Republic), Joni Earnst, first woman elected to the Senate in Iowa, and of course, West Virginia, where Capito became the first woman, and the first GOP Senator from WV in 55 years

The GOP in DC? – Nope the angry American People, which it now behooves them to tack right rather than left to move things in the right direction.

To All those Political Purists – Don’t Complain if You Don’t Vote

It goes without saying that no matter what political party one prefers, if one has a purist mentality, one may not vote at all, especially if the slate of candidates does not meet sterling criteria. This mentality would adhere to many a “group”: those who would not vote for someone who was pro-life or someone who was pro-choice, or someone who vote once against a tax, or for a tax, or someone who has the unfortunate circumstance to be born into a religion that does not fit – say a Catholic or a Mormon. Those individuals who do not exercise their right to vote, or vote for part of a ticket – throw away their right to vote. It is a right that, as a citizen, all may partake – unlike other nations, it is a gift.

Therefore, those who sit back and watch their jobs disappear, or their lifestyle depleted, or whatever issue floats the boat, cannot complain when things get worse, unless, of course, one votes.

So, go vote, hold your nose, cover one eye, and vote in what may be the better candidate – the lesser of two evils. In all of these years, that this blogger has voted, it was sometimes right, sometimes left, when available Libertarian, however, it always had a consequence when it came to the ability to complain or celebrate – it was an earned right to do either.

So, go vote, one person can make a difference and with a clear conscious you can complain. There is no perfect candidate, and there never will be, they are, all of them, left, right and center, just people, who have stepped forward, taken time out of their lives, to try and better the nation.

So Long Harry and Thanks for All the Fish! The President’s Legacy – Will He or Won’t He Work with the GOP once freed of Reid?

The title is in reference to Douglas Adam’s 5 part trilogy beginning with A Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy and ending with “So Long and Thanks’ for All the Fish”. Basically if one has any familiarity with this irreverent take on life and its karma – then Harry Reid is about to become of those characters, the villain who is given his comeuppance, as the party faithful flee.

Tomorrow will be a day of historic proportions some pundits suggest, however, it may also be the tipping point in a mid-term where the population, in general, rejects, not only the Administration’s policies, but the progressives as a whole. Time of course, will tell, however, a recent Suffolk poll on the Massachusetts Governor’s race is telling. The Marginals (here) are chock full of surprises: In this poll, Baker leads Coakely for the Governor’s office by 4 points, and the President’s approval in MA remains underwater at 44%, Hillary Clinton’s visit to help out Martha Coakley had a net zero effect, with 61.4% suggesting it made no difference at all and finally, 28% watched Fox News more than any other network. The poll was based on Massachusetts political enrollment, 51% Unenrolled, 11% GOP, and 38% Democrat (approximately) – which does not bode well across the board for Progressives. The Ballot questions are also of interest, most favor keeping the casino and reject including bottled water, etc. in the states bottle return program.(Boston Herald)

North to New Hampshire, is the Scott Brown Race against Jean Shaheen, which is, at present a tie, Iowa was a tie, until a Des Moines Register Final poll showed no contest at all, with Earnst up by 7 points, and the Democrat Candidate suggesting she looks like Taylor Swift (Politico)

It is indeed a world gone somewhat wild. Given that the Republicans are set to take upwards to 10 seats (as some models show Iowa as a toss-up), and additional congressional seats, the President will be in a position to get things accomplished, should he be of that mind. With Reid gone from the equations (possibly a loud and obnoxious voice in the Senate to be sure, but no longer hampering votes and legislation from seeing the light of day, the President will have more opportunity to pass or veto as he sees’ fit.

Should the President reject overtures of bi-partisanship from the new Congress, then they have a loud enough group going into 2014 to continue to “Bushwhack” him, and the White House will also fall to the GOP – which, given history, is more than likely to happen even if the President was granted sainthood.

That said, a legacy is at stake, and rather going down in history as the rival to Jimmy Carter, he does have the opportunity to come out of this looking a lot more like Bill Clinton. The question remains, will he use the next two years to thwart the congress by any means (including overreach of the Constitution), or will he “play ball” and give and get in the dance of legislation?