We will survive

I remember in 1992 when Clinton beat Bush 41 and the thinking was, "It's over." I'm not saying it was good but we muddled through Monica and a couple of "-gates".

It is not so apparent to everyone but the 1992 election also brought us the 1994 "Contract with America" which allowed the GOP to take control of the House and keep Clinton on the defensive for some time. It was far from perfect but it helped the GOP come together on a national level. Maybe after everybody licks there wounds ...

Now that it is over, (OK officially it isn't - the fat lady hasn't sung yet but she is in the wings and ready to come on stage) the GOP needs to takes lessons learned from watching Obama's success at getting out the vote, energizing people, getting them excited. When was the last time anyone was excited about a Republican nominee for President? Try 1988 and Ronald Reagan. Look back at the years, Bush, Dole, another Bush, then McCain. I'll give McCain lots of credit for a good game but nobody in that list was exciting.

We shouldn't elect a President based on that factor any more than we should based on how much money a candidate raises. But it is a modern fact-of-life that those things matter to some (OK lots of) people. The GOP needs to start grooming younger candidates, they need a farm club equivalent for young Republicans. Someplace they can go and learn the ropes, how to run campaigns, start to win state-level races and work their way up through the ranks.

Or maybe if enough young people have not found a home in the GOP, they will have enough critical mass to start an effective 3rd party. The mainstream media keep talking about the huge number of independents. I heard CNN use a figure as high as 30%. I don't believe that but I guess the number is growing.

A final thought. I won't be good at this but I shared with a group of friends on Monday that what we can do Wednesday morning is pray. The Bible says (first Timothy 2:2) to pray for our leaders (OK it really says "those in authority".) William Bennett said tonight on CNN that he would pray for Obama. If we believe what we say we believe, we should too.

I just went outside a little while ago to look at the stars - they are just really something in the cool fall night air, but while outside I did pray for Obama and confessed in my prayer that I would not do this well but I think it is what we are supposed to do. And when we consider the vastness of the stars, and who made them, our little troubles here on earth seem pretty tiny.