Wednesday, November 08, 2006

President Bush in Dallas

I'm not an enthusiastic Republican. I'm not always crazy about what the President does (okay, I'll admit - he does a lot less than he should). But give me a seat at a rally with him speaking on the eve of a big election and I'll be there. And enjoy the experience, too.

After a performance by Casting Crowns, someone came out and pumped the crowd for the Lt. Governor up for re-election. (Oh, yeah, this is really supposed to be about the gubernatorial race). After about ten minutes of extolling his virtues, he vacated the platform and for about ten minutes we waited for Governor Perry and the President. They entered at last to a wild, resounding ovation. Rick Perry spoke first, the President followed. He flattered us, cajoled us and convinced us that everything was okay, especially if we just keep the Republicans elected. It was everything you would expect a campaign speech to be. People stamped, applauded and "amen-d" throughout his entire speech. Clearly he was the man of the hour in Dallas that night. Say what you want to about the President, but give him this: he knows how to win with the people.As I analyzed, criticized and took apart his speech in my mind, I did remember that with all of his bad points, his failed promises to his conservative voters, and his ambivalent faith, I did vote for him and this is why:

1. He's Texan. (Okay, so my priorities were a little off :-) )
2. He was shown to be a strong leader after September 11.
3. He has kept the economy and nation together.
4. It was speculated that he would replace at least one Supreme Court Justice in his term, turns out he has replaced two, and will possibly replace another. Who would be sitting on the Supreme Court bench had John Kerry been elected? I shudder to think..
5. Although not as straightforward about his beliefs as I think he should be, and though a little too ambivalent for my tastes, he certainly isn't reticent about his faith, either.
6.He was better than John Kerry. Period.

There are others, but I probably don't need to go on. I just want to make it clear that I am not blind to the President's faults, his double standards, or his bad policies. But I honestly believe that he has been a not-so-bad and a better-than-I-expected President. I feel as though progress has been made on the war on terror. I applaud him for stating the facts of terror and terrorists as they are and not trying to sugar coat them as the Dems. have done. Thank goodness one evil maniac has been brought to justice now.
All in all, it was quite an event and I am grateful to have been able to witness it.

Oh, I can't forget about the protesters. Especially since this was my second encounter in a month's time with political protestors.(It just isn't a political anything without protesters, eh?). They made some really idiotic remarks, and waved around some really ignorant and dumb posters. They stayed busy chanting, yelling and fighting with the Republicans. It was interesting to walk into the rally with them vigorously protesting everything under the sun pertaining to the President. Thank goodness they were contained on the other side of the street, because as the night wore on they got worse, and it was very unnerving to walk out after dark and have to face their jeers and all-around weirdness. You wonder what sort of people these are by day, and are they safe? :-)Posted by Picasa

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