Our discussion today began before we reached for bagels and juice during a break between the third and fourth game of volleyball. Looking to find a consensus Dan put forth his analysis of President Obama’s agenda. He said he believed the president’s main purpose in following the strategies he follows is to remain in power. Among the issues he cited for his conclusion was his willingness to accept ridicule from the left for his foreign policies such as sending 30,000 troops to Afghanistan and his willingness to include offshore drilling as part of his energy plan. At the same time he puts forth an agenda of mandatory healthcare, allowing tax cuts on the wealthy to sunset, and increasing regulation of financial institutions.
When I said his balanced pragmatic approach seemed to be getting bills passed and beyond the gridlock that hampered previous administrations, Dan pointed out he hadn’t said the president wasn’t good at it just that his main purpose was in his opinion to stay in power.
Conceding the likelihood the new financial reform bill passed in the Senate a few days ago will probably be reconciled and signed by the president, Mike concluded it would most likely be a poor law. Noting my agreement with Senator Harry Reid, a man whose own agenda often conflicts with mine, I thought it was important to take some action to reign in bankers who feel they're above the law with an estimated $600 Trillion in derivatives floating around the world and destabilizing governments.
Chuckling Mike said he thought they had a right to place their bets through various forms of banking devices. Then I reminded him Goldman Sachs was betting with TARP funds they got from us, the taxpaying public. He agreed it was wrong for them to use our money, but asserted he didn’t approve of bailouts in the first place.
Being a professor at one of California’s excellent institutions of higher education Dan seemed the appropriate person to ask about the Texas textbook controversy. Unaware of the details Dan said his recent trip to San Antonia had taught him that Texas considers itself a separate country from the United States. Noting their board of education’s recent moves to vindicate Joe McCarthy, have the words of Jefferson Davis appear alongside those of Abraham Lincoln, and call into question the rationale for separation of church and state in the social studies curriculum only helped to confirm his conclusion.
When I came home I reviewed an ABC interview in which Don McLeroy, an influential member of this board stated that while the founding fathers “wanted it to be a secular state we can still refer to it as a Christian nation.” Maybe we would all be better off if as Dan hypothesized Texas chose to secede from the union. In reality, Texas is one of two states that does statewide book purchases and therefore holds sway over not only the five million students in its borders but many throughout the nation.
My own hypothesis is this is revenge for Texas suffering a defeat on American Idol this week. In an unbelievable example of pure urban hostility toward a good ol’ country boy, blue eyed soul brother Casey James was sent home to Fort Worth, leaving Chicago native, Lee DeWyze and Toledo darlin’, Crystal Bowersox to compete for the top spot. Even if they can sing circles around Casey, this is just another example of the liberal media trying to transform what is truly great about America…and on FOX, yet.
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