Last year I ran for local government office. I have often said I ran “unsuccessfully”; however, I’m not sure that qualifier is entirely accurate since winning is not the only measure of success. Regardless of the outcome, I learned a lot and now can look back and see things I did well and areas in which I made mistakes — in some cases, lots of mistakes.

My thoughts below are designed to encourage more conservative candidates to run for office and to run with success. While conservatives will not win every election, they will lose every election in which they don’t run. The morale of the story then is to get out of our comfort zone and run. And by following a good plan, I feel that most conservatives won’t just run but will run well.

My Suggestions for a Successful Political Campaign

1. Know why you are running.

Running for office and campaigning is hard work. It’s very tiring, expensive, and emotionally draining and the race doesn’t end until the polls close on election night. With such a gauntlet to run, the candidate must remain confident in his or her reasons for running. Such confidence and the accompanying clarity of vision produces the steadfastness and resolve (and energy) needed to finish the race.

2. Differentiate yourself from your opponent(s).

If there is nothing different between you and your opponent then the race comes down to a popularity content. To avoid that potential disaster means you must find about three strong and compelling issues that you can promote and your opponent cannot. While this divides people along opinion lines, you need some division to gain supporters. Stay on message with those points and repeat them often — they become your brand that is remembered within the voting booth.

3. Be able to clearly articulate your vision in one sentence.

We only have one chance for a first impression with someone — remember, that someone is a potential voter. That first impression is largely formed with the first sentence they hear coming out of our mouth. Therefore a candidate must be able to demonstrate his or her strength quickly and confidently under a variety of scenarios including door-to-door campaigning, chance encounters, public speaking, and so forth. The first sentence is a good time to articulate one or more of the three points from #2 above.

4. Consistently set the agenda of the campaign.

A candidate must early on shift from a defensive position and go on the offense. That doesn’t mean name calling, mud slinging, and pointing out the personal weaknesses of your opponent. Instead, it means steering the conversation and the agenda of the campaign to your issues and vision. It means staying on point, articulating your vision clearly, and showing leadership. In time, chances are high you can convince many people that your position is right.

5. Run a clean, organized campaign.

I have a few suggestions about running a good campaign. Of course, all materials and the image presented should be high-quality and appropriate for your community.

• Get an ethical campaign manager you trust and who has good judgment.
• Develop a campaign strategy but adapt it as conditions change.
• Don’t run your campaign all by yourself — let your supporters help you.
• Have a substantive yet attractive website. When talking with the media and the public, offer just the broad points but refer people to your website for the details.
• Meet with voters — door-to-door, community events, public forums, etc.
• Present a positive vision and limit personal attacks.
• Create a Get Out The Vote (GOTV) strategy and staff it with volunteers.

6. Never forget who you serve.

People don’t like arrogance, flattery, and lies. People know when they are being played and can smell a politician a mile a way so don’t be a politician — be a statesman. You work for the voters so ask them for their vote. Look them in the eye when you talk. Don’t rush away or treat them as unimportant. Don’t ever lie or just tell them what they want to hear. Admit mistakes and learn from them. Don’t become a politician!

Some Advice for Voters & Supporters

A campaign is a big personal risk for the candidate and his or her family. The entire process is difficult and it is emotionally painful to lose the election. Therefore, if you support the candidate and want to vote for him then be sure to take any chance to encourage him and show your support.

As a candidate it is hard asking for money but money is needed to run a good race. I challenge you as a supporter to give financially to your candidate no matter how small the amount.  I’m convinced that in most races if each supporter gave just $5 then their candidate would be able to match or exceed the campaign funding of any other candidate in the race.

In my campaign I walked door-to-door a lot since it was a local government race. It was tiring and hot and I really appreciated the periodic supporter who gave me a glass of water (or lemonade) and a chance to sit down for a brief rest. I’ve heard other candidates express similar thanks and also note that bathroom breaks are much appreciated. It’s amazing how those seemingly little things can be so refreshing and encouraging.

In Conclusion

With these thoughts I encourage conservatives to run for office and to run to win. I also encourage supporters to truly support them — by giving financially, by volunteering their time and skills, and, of course, by voting.

Someone sent me an interesting analogy via email today. It’s an adaptation of one of Aesop’s most popular fables known as The Ant and the Grasshopper. While I’m sure this work could be improved upon, it is thought-provoking in light of our federal government which seems intent on penalizing work and the accumulation of wealth by those who take risks in business and are self-reliant.

I quote this adaptation below (original source unknown) for you to ponder on the political implications. Please share your thoughts after reading this adaptation of the Ant and the Grasshopper.

OLD VERSION

The ant works hard in the withering heat all summer long, building his house and laying up supplies for the winter.

The grasshopper thinks the ant is a fool and laughs and dances and plays the summer away.

Come winter, the ant is warm and well fed. The grasshopper has no food or shelter, so he dies out in the cold.

MORAL OF THE STORY: Be responsible for yourself!

MODERN VERSION

The ant works hard in the withering heat and the rain all summer long, building his house and laying up supplies for the winter.

The grasshopper thinks the ant is a fool and laughs and dances and plays the summer away.

Come winter, the shivering grasshopper calls a press conference and demands to know why the ant should be allowed to be warm and well fed while he is cold and starving. CBS, NBC , PBS, CNN, and ABC show up to provide pictures of the shiveringgrasshopper next to a video of the ant in his comfortable home with a table filled with food.

America is stunned by the sharp contrast.  How can this be, that in a country of such wealth, this poor grasshopper is allowed to suffer so?

Kermit the Frog appears on Oprah with the grasshopper and everybody cries when they sing, ‘It’s Not Easy Being Green….’ ACORN stages a demonstration in front of the ant’s house where the news stations film the group singing, “We shall overcome.” Then Rev. Jeremiah Wright has the group kneel down to pray to God for the grasshopper’s sake.

President Obama condemns the ant and blames President Bush, President Reagan, Christopher Columbus, and the Pope for the grasshopper’s plight. Nancy Pelosi & Harry Reid exclaim in an interview with Larry King that the ant has gotten rich off the back of the grasshopper, and both call for an immediate tax hike on theant to make him pay his fair share.

Finally, the EEOC drafts the Economic Equity & Anti-Grasshopper Act retroactive to the beginning of the summer. The ant is fined for failing to hire a proportionate number of green bugs and, having nothing left to pay his retroactive taxes, his home is confiscated by the Government Green Czar and given to the grasshopper.

The story ends as we see the grasshopper and his free-loading friends finishing up the last bits of the ant’s food while the government house he is in, which, as you recall, just happens to be the ant’s old house, crumbles around them because the grasshopper doesn’t maintain it.

The ant has disappeared in the snow, never to be seen again.

The grasshopper is found dead in a drug related incident, and the house, now abandoned, is taken over by a gang of spiders who terrorize the ramshackle, once prosperous and once peaceful, neighborhood.

The entire Nation collapses bringing the rest of the free world with it.

MORAL OF THE STORY: Be careful how you vote in 2010.

This is a powerful 1 minute 40 second video that I feel puts the Scott Brown electoral victory in a proper historical context. Please watch:

Click here to view the embedded video.

Someone emailed me this image yesterday. It is entitled “Government Snow Plow” and includes the caption “Designed by the same people designing the health care reform” below the image.

I think this picture cleverly depicts the often staggeringly inefficient results of non-market-based interventions within our economy. Over time a truly free market weeds out most waste and excess. Conversely, politicians like to hand out favors (our Founding Fathers called it largess) using our money and thus perpetuate, and expand, government waste.

I don’t know who to attribute this image to but it sure is clever. I also feel the email’s health care analogy is pertinent. Think about this: how can we trust our federal government to manage the entire nation’s health care system for 300+ million people when they can’t even take good care of a few million veterans? What think you?

Maj. Hasan’s murderous attack that killed 13 people at Ft. Hood last week was a premeditated terrorist attack. I’m tired of hearing anything otherwise. If you don’t agree, please think about these four things:

1. We know Hasan planned this attack and was prepared to die.
2. We know Hasan was prepared and brought extra loaded magazines for this killing spree.
3. We know Hasan was a radical Muslim who vocally opposed our foreign policy. The Army knew this as well.
4. We know Hasan shouted “Allahu Akbar!” (“Allah is great!”) while committing these murders.

If the above is not enough evidence to document Hasan’s actions as a terrorist attack then I don’t know what else is needed. This attack is clearly the deadliest post-9/11 terrorist act on American soil. Our President, leaders and news media should treat this terrorist attack as such and respond accordingly. Similarly, the Army (and everyone else for that matter) should be on the lookout for like-minded terrorists and, when radical Islamic warning signs are found, should have the backbone to remove them.

Our troops deserve better than to have to serve with terrorist sympathizers and terrorist murderers like Maj. Hasan. For a similar, yet more forceful and detailed viewpoint please see retired Col. Ralph Peter’s article “Fort Hood’s 9/11.”

Most Ponderstorm readers already know that our taxpayer-funded federal government is abusing its power. What I share below is a blatant example of such abuse of taxpayer funds. In short, I’m about to show you an actual piece of propaganda by the United States government and funded by the American taxpayer. It shamelessly and openly pushes an issue that is a central feature in Barack Obama’s radical leftist (and even Marxist) agenda.

On the homepage of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) website (www.hhs.gov) there is a button and link (screen capture shown on left; I added yellow highlighting for emphasis) pointing to another government-funded website named HealthReform.gov. This website clearly and prominently promotes the Obama Plan. Along with many misrepresentation of facts and abuses of government power, they even have the audacity to state their recognition within the “Innovations Gallery” that “celebrates the innovators and innovations who are championing the President’s vision of more effective and open government.” Who is behind the Innovations Gallery? Why, it’s WhiteHouse.gov! Shameless propaganda! And the reason given for this recognition is for “allowing Americans to take part personally in the health reform process.” Wait till you hear more about how HealthReform.gov is not about open government and citizen involvement for those who don’t want a government health care takeover.

So I clicked the “State Your Support” button to see what was up and couldn’t believe what I saw. Let me quote what this page read and also provide a clickable screen capture so you can see for yourself (again, I highlighted some of the very strong propaganda words used by our taxpayer-funded government to push a particular government-takeover agenda under the guise of “reform”). Let me quote the support letter American citizens are being asked to sign (there is no option to edit the message or offer anything but support):

Dear Mr. President,

We strongly support your commitment to comprehensive health reform.

This is not a luxury. The continuing, sharp escalation of health care costs for families, businesses, and government is unsustainable. Reform is imperative.

We believe that health reform must be enacted this year.

Reform is needed to help America’s families struggling with rising costs and those who are losing their insurance. At the same time, real health reform is crucial to keeping American businesses competitive in the world economy and for the country’s long-term economic viability. As our country faces economic challenges, the time for reform is now.

We support health reform that follows these principles:

• Protect families’ financial health
• Assure affordable, quality health coverage for all Americans
• Provide portability of coverage
• Guarantee choice of doctors
• Invest in prevention and wellness
• Improve patient safety and quality of care
• End barriers to coverage for people with pre-existing medical conditions
• Reduce long-term growth of health costs for businesses and government

During these extraordinarily challenging times, we need to put aside past differences and address the health and economic crisis. Our shared interest must come before narrow interests so we can achieve a health system that is affordable and provides high quality for all Americans. We will support your budget with its reserve fund dedicated to achieving health care reform in a fiscally responsible manner. Each of us must be prepared to contribute to achieving this fundamental goal.

By signing this statement we affirm our commitment to work with you and our Congressional leaders to enact legislation this year which provides affordable, high quality coverage for all Americans.

Okay, let me get this straight: The government is spending our money to influence those in government to adopt “reforms” that will lead to more government control of our lives. There is no way for anyone to voice anything but support (reminds me of dictatorships who have “free and fair elections” with only one candidate on the ballot). I know this kind of thing happens all the time in communist China, Iran, Cuba, and North Korea, but I though it was illegal for the United States federal government to spend public money lobbying for a particular partisan effort and to shut out opposing viewpoints. At the bottom of every page on this government web site is the line “This is an official U.S. Government Web site managed by the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services.” This is un-American!

It is an extremely dangerous thing when the government can take our money under the force of law and then spend it to influence public policy decisions that will take even more of our freedoms away. This is nothing short of government propaganda and is wrong regardless of which party or person is in power! Wake up, Democrats, your freedoms are being lost also.

So what can we do about this? Well, I was hoping I could contact HealthReform.gov and voice my opposition to this abuse of power but the only online contact forms available there were very pro-government. Again, I quote these arrogant bureaucrats:

We want to hear what you think about health reform.

Share your story and send in ideas about why we need health reform this year

Show your support for President Obama’s commitment to health reform.

Clearly HHS doesn’t really want to hear what all Americans think about health reform. They only want to hear what pro-government takeover Americans think. So much for being a government “of the people, by the people, and for the people.”

My recommendation is to contact HHS directly and strongly (yet respectfully) voice your views on this abuse of power and being forced to pay for government propaganda. You can do this via the HHS online contact form and as follows:

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
200 Independence Avenue, S.W.
Washington, D.C. 20201

Telephone: 202-619-0257 (although listed on the web site, it is no longer in service)
Toll Free: 877-696-6775

I called the toll free number and the HHS comment line for the Office of the Secretary is 202-205-5445. You have to leave a message.

My recommendation is to fill out both the online contact form and to call them. You can read more about this propaganda and the efforts of Senator Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) to investigate. You may wish to encourage Senator Grassley to put even more pressure on HHS to remove this propaganda immediately.

I wish I knew who to credit with the following idea but I do not. It is, however, so simple and yet so profound that I wanted to share it with everyone. Friends, this is something we should do. I quote:

Like most folks in this country, I have a job. I work, they pay me. I pay my taxes and the government distributes my taxes as it sees fit. In order to get that paycheck in my case, I am required to pass a random urine test (with which I have no problem). What I do have a problem with is the distribution of my taxes to people who don’t have to pass a urine test.

So, here is my Question: Shouldn’t one have to pass a urine test to get a welfare check because I have to pass one to earn it for them?

Please understand, I have no problem with helping people get back on their feet. I do, on the other hand, have a problem with helping someone sitting on their a** — doing drugs, while I work. . . . Can you imagine how much money each state would save if people had to pass a urine test to get a public assistance check?

I guess we could title that program, ‘Urine or You’re Out’.

Now that’s some good thinking and would save far more than it costs! What do you think?

I read where another guy expanded this concept a bit and proposed that all college students receiving government aid should likewise be required to take a random urine tests if they received public money. Hey, let’s expand it further and say that all financial executives getting bailout money should also have to pass random urine tests. Oh, and don’t forget — let’s urine test the guys in Washington who are handing out our money! They really must be high on something to think we can borrow our way out of the mess they created.

Many Ponderstorm readers know that I’m running for office in Starkville. Election day is June 2. We all know that many people make up their minds in the last three days before they vote. With that in mind, the local Republican Party Executive Committee funded a quick television campaign to provide a unifying message and exposure for all participating Republican candidates. We focused on four issues that are important to most voters in Starkville.

Here’s our TV spot:

Click here to view the embedded video.

What are your thoughts?

Beware, the Obama Administration is trying to bypass Congress and nationalize the United States banking system! This unconstitutional scheme is being done through financial maneuvering efforts that don’t make sense to most of us. In short, the Obama Administration is seeking to convert government loans into equity stakes of common shares of stock (with full voting rights) that are owned by the federal government — particularly the Treasury Department which is under the Executive Branch. This scheme would immediately make the government (i.e. the Obama Administration) the largest shareholder in several of our nation’s largest banks. It appears banks will have not a choice in this loan for stock conversion scheme.

This maneuver was done to Citigroup in January when up to $25 billion in preferred stock (which was basically a loan) was converted to common stock. This gave the government equity ownership including full voting rights. This move is a done deal!

Some think of this as a “backdoor to nationalization” approach. Whether it’s backdoor or frontdoor, the result is banks that are essentially owned and/or controlled by the government. Such a move allows the federal government to control everything from the printing to the supply to the flow of money within our economy. Bank ownership would mean the government would be directly responsible for setting rules and policy regarding creditworthiness, lending terms, qualification for mortgages, interest rates and so much more. That is a very, very scary thought.

Furthermore, the federal government seems to be actively seeking this position of power and is  putting conditions on the repayment of bailout funds that make it impossible for banks to repay these loans unless the government decides that their repayment is in the “national economic interest” whatever that means.  Sounds to me like the federal government is putting a stranglehold on the banks. Remember the federal government “borrowed” the bailout money that they received to inject into the banks. In effect, they are taking the banks over with nothing but paper.

A free people must have control over their own money. Any government that takes this power from their people enslaves them and controls their destiny. As Americans, we must never allow this to happen to our banks. We cannot give this up.

While it is true that our401Ks are worth less now than they were last year, they are not worthless. If the government gets their hands on them they will have even less value — the value will be whatever the government and not the market says it is. Remember, this is the same government that runs the Social Security system which is already worthless for most of today’s workers under the age of 45.

Beware, lest the fear of losing our money lead us to turn it over to the greedy hands of government. Instead, let us fear the loss of our money (and our freedoms) to the government. I urge you to contact your members of Congress and demand they stop this power grab from the Obama Administration controlled Treasury Department (which is headed by a tax cheat — learn more [28 page .pdf document]).

Take Action Now:

• Write your Representative
• Write your Senators

On PonderPost I cataloged some of the major public policy changes we’ve experienced under the Presidency of Barack Obama in an article entitled “Yes, With Obama We Got Change.” These changes are significant departures from those of President George W. Bush.  In each case I provided a source so you don’t have to take me at my word. My sources were varied and included both liberal and conservative venues as well as traditional news media outlets. The amount of change, I might add, has been staggering and makes me fearful for the very safety of my country. I invite your review and comments.