Amen, Senator Coburn

Senator Tom Coburn (R-OK), writing in the Wall Street Journal, hits the nail right on the head about the Republicans' chances this year.

As congressional Republicans contemplate the prospect of an electoral disaster this November, much is being written about the supposed soul-searching in the Republican Party. A more accurate description of our state is paralysis and denial.

Many Republicans are waiting for a consultant or party elder to come down from the mountain and, in Moses-like fashion, deliver an agenda and talking points on stone tablets.

This echoes exactly what I've heard on talk radio - there is some kind of "message" the Republicans can craft to win elections. It's not about message as Senator Coburn notes, it's about behavior.

Voters are tired of buying a GOP package and finding a big-government liberal agenda inside. What we need is not new advertising, but truth in advertising.

He also brings up something I had never heard of - the K Street Project.

The K Street Project is a project by the Republican Party to pressure Washington lobbying firms to hire Republicans in top positions, and to reward loyal GOP lobbyists with access to influential officials. It was launched in 1995, by Republican strategist Grover Norquist and House majority leader Tom DeLay.

K Street in Washington DC is where the big lobbying firms have their headquarters and is sometimes refered to as the fourth branch of government. Lobbying firms have great influence in U.S. national politics due to monetary resources and the revolving door policy of hiring former government officials. It is common practice for politicians to request money from lobbying firms for an exchange in better access to officials and to buy favoritism in policies.

Well that's pretty sickening. Funny how we never hear the loudmouths like Rush and Sean Hannity and Mark Levin talk about this. Meanwhile, where do you think all that pork is going if not to the sponsors of the K-Street lobbyists?

Senator Coburn finishes with a strong endorsement of John McCain as the one fellow who can smack some sense into the big government, porked-out, borrow-and-spend fatcats in the Republican Party.

Regaining our brand is not about "messaging." It's about action. It's about courage. It's about priorities. Most of all, it's about being willing to give up our political careers so our grandkids don't have to grow up in a debtor's prison, or a world in which other nations can tell a weakened and bankrupt America where we can and can't defend liberty, pursue terrorists, or show compassion.

John McCain, for all his faults, is the one Republican candidate who can lead us through our wilderness. Mr. McCain is not running on a messianic platform or as a great healer of dysfunctional Republicans who refuse to help themselves. His humility is one of his great strengths. In his heart, he's a soldier who sees one more hill to charge, one more mission to complete.

Amen, brother.