Whats' happening in today's Military?

What’ happening in today’s Military?

I received a nice email today from the Public Affairs Office of the US Central Command. My recent postings on winning the War on terror, and suggestions on what we could do in Iraq, apparently got to the right person.

They sent me a website www.centcom.mil that I think all Americans should spend several hours reading, and see what our Military is actually doing around the World.

Please click on the link below for the U.S. Central Command, and do what you can to show our men and women in uniform that we back home appreciate their sacrifice.

Mark (Mustang) Towner,
The Spyglass

GOP could regain the US Senate

http://news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=514&u=/ap/20061214/ap_on_go_co/johnson_44

Could get very Interesting

Mark Towner, The Spyglass

McCain agrees, Deploy more US Troops to Iraq

McCain: Deploy more troops to Iraq
By THOMAS WAGNER, Associated Press Writer2 hours, 8 minutes ago
Sen. John McCain (news, bio, voting record) said Thursday that America should to deploy 15,000 to 30,000 more troops to Iraq to control its sectarian violence, and give moderate Iraqi politicians the stability they need to take the country in the right direction.
McCain made the remarks to reporters in Baghdad, where he and five other members of Congress were meeting with U.S. and Iraqi officials.
"The American people are disappointed and frustrated with the Iraq war, but they want us to succeed if there's any way to do that," McCain, a possible 2008 presidential candidate, said at a news conference at the U.S. Embassy in Iraq's heavily fortified Green Zone.
The Arizona Republican said five to 10 more brigades of U.S. combat soldiers must be sent to Iraq. Brigades vary in size but generally include about 3,000 troops, meaning he was recommending 15,000 to 30,000 additional forces.
Connecticut Sen. Joseph Lieberman (news, bio, voting record) said the delegation had met with Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, a Shiite, and urged him to break his ties with anti-U.S. cleric Muqtada al-Sadr and disarm his Mahdi Army militia.
Al-Sadr controls 30 of the 275 parliament seats and is a key figure in al-Maliki's coalition.
Currently, the U.S. military has about 140,000 troops in Iraq, and President Bush is considering a change of strategy in the country, including Baghdad, where stepped-up efforts to curtail sectarian violence failed this summer. The current U.S. force includes about 15 combat brigades made up of 50,000-60,000 soldiers, the U.S. military said Thursday.
McCain has joined other legislators and military analysts in saying that Bush sent far too few American troops to Iraq after the coalition toppled Saddam Hussein in March 2003, leading to widespread violence at the hands of Sunni Arab insurgent groups and Shiite militias.
But McCain said U.S. military commanders in Iraq had not asked the delegation for more U.S. troops, and one of the senators traveling with him didn't seem to accept his argument.
"Iraq is in crisis. The rising sectarian violence threatens the very existence of Iraq as a nation," said Sen. Susan Collins (news, bio, voting record), a Republican from Maine. The current U.S. strategy in Iraq has failed, but "I'm not yet convinced that additional troops will pave the way to a peaceful Iraq in a lasting sense," she said.
"My fear is that if we have more troops sent to Iraq that we will just see more injuries and deaths, that we might have a short-term impact, but without a long-term political settlement," Collins said.
Gunmen in military uniforms kidnapped dozens of people Thursday from a commercial area in central Baghdad, police said, and a car bomb killed two policemen who were trying to defuse it in Baghdad's Sadr City section, where officers were on high alert after receiving tips that militants were moving more bombs into the Shiite slum.
McCain said he realizes that only about 15 percent to 18 percent of Americans favor deploying more U.S. troops to Iraq, and that if such a move proved unsuccessful in the unpopular war it could hurt his presidential ambitions.
But the Vietnam War veteran also said that Americans must realize that if U.S. troops leave Iraq in a state of chaos, insurgent groups such as al-Qaida in Iraq "will follow us home."
Lieberman said the U.S. delegation left its meetings with al-Maliki, President Jalal Talabani and other Iraqi officials believing "there is a force of moderates within the context of Iraqi politics coming together to strengthen the center here against the extremists."
"We need more, not less, U.S. troops here" to improve Iraq's security, he said.
Lieberman said the U.S. delegation was "quite explicit" about "how important it is that the Iraqis themselves begin to take aggressive action to disarm the militias, to stop the sectarian violence and to involve all the people in country to governance," including promised provincial elections.
Last month, Lieberman won re-election to the U.S. Senate as an independent after losing the Democratic primary in his state of Connecticut in part because he supports the Iraq war.
The delegation also included Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, John Thune of South Dakota, and Republican Rep. Mark Kirk (news, bio, voting record) of Illinois.
The Congress members were scheduled to travel on Thursday to Iraq's southern port city of Basra and to Ramadi, the capital of Anbar province, a dangerous area where many insurgent groups are fighting U.S. and Iraqi forces.

How to Win Over Iraq and the War on Terror

By Mark E. Towner, Salt Lake City Utah


To show the people of Iraq that the United States wants their country to be free from terrorists and allow them to pursue peace, happiness, and prosperity the United States should propose to the people of Iraq the following.

The United States will agree to deploy US forces to Iraq totaling (500,000) from January 1, 2007 to January 1, 2009. The President will then ask all healthy former servicemen and women up to age 65 including all former Vietnam veterans, reserve, and current military to re-up for a six month to a one year rotation in Iraq. The President would call upon young Americans to volunteer a 1 year service mission to assist the rebuilding of the infrastructure of Iraq. The United States Military will totally seal off the boarders of Iraq, not allowing any entry into Iraq. All supplies into Iraq will be brought in by US convoy. The reserve and older ex military personal would secure the Iraq boarders using the latest technology available and guard and protect the oil fields and pipelines. This experience will also help us to perfect how to secure our own boarders here in the United States. I would expect over 1 million signups of former military alone. I would expect 1-2 million US volunteer’s to assist in rebuilding Iraq if they can be assured of security in the nation. The active Military would completely seal Baghdad and other hot zones in Iraq. They would also surround small remote towns and order its evacuation, giving the residents 48 hours to leave. Then the military would do a clean sweep of any terrorists. Once the town was secure, the US volunteer’s would move into the town and rebuild the homes, infrastructure, electricity, phone service, internet etc. and just like on the TV show, these efforts would be documented and reported 24 hours a day worldwide. When completed, the residents would be allowed to return to their homes where they would have clean water, sewer, electricity, etc.

After this procedure has been repeated over and over, the minds and hearts of the people will be changed. The people will turn against the terrorists and they themselves will police their own neighborhoods and once again take pride in their community and country.

In December 2008, all the troops including all the Old Vietnam Veterans, the Volunteer’s, everyone can come home to the arms of a grateful nation, and the people of the world will again respect and thank America.


Mark E. Towner
The Political Spyglass
801.502.9134

Just Follow the Money

2008 Whale List Grows

As regular Fix readers know, we're keeping a close eye on the courtship of elite GOP fundraisers by the new crop of potential 2008 Republican presidential candidates. We're particularly interested in the wooing of Bush "Pioneers and Rangers" -- the elite fundraisers who raised wads of money for the president during his last two campaigns.
In yesterday's Washington Post, Michael Fletcher and I documented efforts by Gov. Mitt Romney (R-Mass.) and Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) to win over these money men and women.
The Post did an exhaustive examination of the connections between Bush and his top campaign cash collectors back in the spring of 2004; it's an invaluable research tool that shows how a fundraising machine is built. If you haven't already, bookmark it now.
In our work on Sunday's story, we collected many more names of Pioneers and Rangers who have committed to McCain, Romney and former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani. The list of those who have committed to a 2008 candidate is included below. We've dubbed these 2008 big spenders "whales."

THE WHALE LIST
Rudy Giuliani (4 Rangers, 8 Pioneers)Bruce Gelb, retired Bristol Meyers Squibb (N.Y.) PIONEERCathy Govan, DGM & Associates (Mich.) PIONEERMichael Govan, Legacy Group (Va.) PIONEERJim Lee, James H. Lee Investments (Texas) PIONEERLinda Maynor, Blach & Bingham (Ala.) RANGERTerry Neese, Terry Neese Enterprises (Okla.) RANGERSteve Payne, Payne Consulting (Texas) RANGERJ. Bryan Pickens, Pickens Investments (Texas) RANGERPaulette Pyle, Oregonians for Food & Shelter (Ore.) PIONEERPaul Singer, Elliott Associates (N.Y.) PIONEERBarron Thomas, Barron Thomas Aviation (N.J.) PIONEERBarry Wynn, Colonial Trust Group (S.C.) PIONEER

John McCain (12 Rangers, 9 Pioneers)Lawrence Bathgate II, Bathgate Wegener (N.J.) RANGERWayne Berman, Berman Strategies (D.C.) RANGERHarold Beznos, Beztaks Cos. (Mich.) PIONEERMark Broxmeyer, Fairfield Properties (N.Y.) PIONEERBill Clements, former Texas Governor (Texas) PIONEERPatrick Durkin, Credit Suisse First Boston (Conn.) RANGERDavid Girard Carlo, Blank Rome (Pa.) RANGERLew Eisenberg, Granite Capital International Group (N.J.) RANGERRobert Fannin, Steptoe & Johnson (Ariz.) RANGERJon Hammes, retired Hammes & Co. (Wis.) RANGERKent Hance, former Congressman (Texas) PIONEERChuck Larson, Iowa state Senator (Iowa) RANGERTom Loeffler, lobbyist (Texas) RANGERJames Nicholson, PVS Chemicals (Mich.) RANGEREric Nye, TXU (Texas), PIONEERGerald Parsky, Aurora Capital Group (Calif.) PIONEERCarter Pate, PricewatershouseCoopers (D.C./Texas) PIONEERGerry Perenchio, Univision (Calif.) PIONEERSergio Pino, Century Partners Group (Fla.) RANGERSig Rogich, Rogich Communications Group (Nev.) RANGERRon Weiser, former Slovakia Ambassador (Mich.) PIONEER

Mitt Romney (9 Rangers, 7 Pioneers)Bruce Benson, Benson Mineral Group (Colo.) RANGERAl Cardenas, Tew Cardenas (Fla.) RANGERChristopher Collins, Collins Nickas & Company (Mass.) RANGERHerb Collins, Boston Capital Partners (Mass.) RANGERBill Danhof, Miller Canfield (Mich.) PIONEERAlan Fabian, Southwest Medical Center (Md.) PIONEERDavid Fischer, The Suburban Collection (Mich.) PIONEERJohn Harris, Harris Farms (Calif.) PIONEERRon Kaufman, Dutko Group (D.C.) PIONEERHoward Leach, Leach Capital (Calif.) RANGERJoe O'Donnell, Boston Concessions Group (Mass.) PIONEERJohn Rakolta, Walbridge Aldinger (Mich.) RANGERRaul Romero, S&B Infrastructure (Texas) RANGERL.E. Simmons, SCF Partners (Texas) PIONEEREric Tanenblatt, McKenna Long Aldridge (Ga.) RANGERTom Tellefsen, Tellefsen Investments (Calif.) RANGER

Champions of middle class often filthy-rich

By Star Parker Scripps Howard News Service
Now that Democrats are back in power, the politics of fear and envy are back in vogue. It's hard to open a newspaper or watch the news without hearing about the "income gap" or the "wealth gap." CNN anchor Lou Dobbs, well-dressed and well-fed (Lou certainly is up in that 1 percent of the population earning 20 percent of the income), goes on and on, night after night, about the "War on the Middle Class." Whose war, Lou? Who's running it? Exactly who is it that is attacking our middle class? Is it those folks who, instead of sitting on the couch and listening to Lou, are actually working and taking responsibility for their lives? Rep. Barney Frank, D-Mass., who will take over as chairman of the House Financial Services Committee, says he wants to hold hearings on "How do you do a better job of sharing overall economic growth with the average worker?" and calls this the "No. 1 problem" facing the country. Perhaps Frank should check with his colleagues on Capitol Hill, who seem to be surviving the assault on working Americans quite well. Roll Call newspaper has just completed its annual survey of the 50 wealthiest members of Congress. The cutoff at No. 50, at $4.67 million, is up 12 percent from last year's survey. The top four wealthiest members are all Frank's fellow Democrats: John Kerry ($750 million), Herb Kohl ($243 million), Jay Rockefeller ($200 million) and Jane Harman ($172 million). The top five would have been Democrats but John Corzine ($262 million) departed the U.S. Senate to become governor of New Jersey. New Speaker Nancy Pelosi comes in at No. 15, at a paltry $14.25 million net worth. How about Hillary Clinton? No. 25 at $10.05 million. Illinois Democrat Rahm Emmanuel, who wants to scrutinize executive compensation and champion activist government for the poor and middle class, is worth $8.52 million. Two relevant questions to ask are: Is the stuff about the growing gaps in income and wealth true? And, second, even if it is, does it matter? Without trying to answer the first question, it is worth pointing out that what the press cranks out daily as gospel is far from accurate. Cato Institute economist and columnist Alan Reynolds challenges the conventional wisdom a gap exists in a new textbook called "Income and Wealth." Reynolds demonstrates the statistical complications and vagaries in compiling data on income and wealth. He shows that this is a field of dreams for politicians who can come up with whatever they want to and can show whatever they want to show. Reynolds himself thinks that the country is in great shape and that American workers are really the envy of the rest of the world. Regarding the second question, my answer is that this information is important if what you really care about is what your neighbor has. However, I would suggest that there is a reason that the Tenth Commandment is "Thou Shalt Not Covet." Fear and envy create wealth for politicians who use these levers, as Democrats want to do now, to activate and grow government as a pretense for solving problems that people can only solve for themselves. A recently released study by the Goldwater Institute in Arizona examines, state by state, changes in the rates of poverty from 1990 to 2000. The study shows that in the last decade, the 10 states with the lowest per capita government spending had an 11.2 percent decline in poverty rates and the 10 states with the highest per capita spending had a 7.3 percent increase in poverty rates. The 10 states with the lowest levels of taxation had a 13.7 percent decline in poverty rates and the 10 states with the highest level of taxation had a 3.04 percent increase. Individuals who work create jobs. It's an issue of freedom and values not social engineering. What can politicians do? Help get government out of the way. If the newly crowned Democrats want to do better than Republicans, they should start with education. Barney Frank thinks that the nation's No. 1 problem is worrying what everyone else is earning. The nation's No. 1 problem is the public school monopoly and what it is doing to inner city kids. The New York Times reports that new studies show that, despite the ambitious goals of No Child Left Behind, reading and math performance gaps between white and black and Hispanic children are virtually unchanged. According to the Times, these new tests show "African-American and Hispanic students in high school can read and do arithmetic at only the average level of whites in junior high school." Bust the public school monopoly. Get freedom in education. This is what Democrats can do to help.
Star Parker is president of CURE, Coalition on Urban Renewal and Education (http://www.urbancure.org/) and author of "White Ghetto: How Middle Class America Reflects Inner City Decay"

Remember Pearl Harbor, and my Dad Elverne G. (Hap) Towner

Photo #: 80-G-19933Pearl Harbor Attack, 7 December 1941USS Vestal (AR-4) beached on Aiea shoal, Pearl Harbor, after the Japanese raid. She is listing from damage caused by two bombs that hit her during the attack.Official U.S. Navy Photograph, now in the collections of the National Archives.

Photo #: 80-G-258905Battle of Kolombangara, 13 July 1943USS Saint Louis (CL-49) comes alongside USS Vestal (AR-4) for initial repair of torpedo damage received in the action. Photographed at Tulagi, Solomon Islands, about 20 July 1943.Official U.S. Navy Photograph, now in the collections of the National Archives.

My father Elverne G. (Hap) Towner joined the Navy at 17 during the depression. He traveled all over the world. He was stationed in Hawaii along with my Mom and oldest brother on December 7, 1941. My father was an officer aboard the USS Vestal during the attack. His ship was one of only a few that had got up enough steam to get under way .They had to beach the ship as she was a repair ship and the captain wanted her not to sink in the channel. The Vestal was so important it was one of the first in drydock to have repairs done. Repairs were done by their own crew. The Vestal saw just about every surface engagement in the Pacific and did repair on hundreds of our ships. Then came 7 Dec. 1941. The Vestal was alongside the USS Arizona when the Arizona was blown up. The Vestal was hit twice, got away from the Arizona and beached at McGrew's Point.

Below are the ship’s log recordings for the USS Vestal on December 7th 1941: 0-400 hours - Moored port side to Arizona’s port side in berth F-7 in 7 fathoms of water with standard mooring lines in use. #3 boilers in use for auxiliary purposes. Naval ships present: SubBase(CinCPAC-SOPA), ARGONNE (Compasefor) and various other units of the US Pacific Fleet. 4 to 8 & 8 to 12 Moored as before. 0730 DOWNEY, F. G., 201 02 61, CMsmth returned aboard from 10 days leave. 0755 Surprise air attack by Japanese planes. Sounded general quarters. 0800 All guns manned including 30 caliber machine guns. 0805 Opened fire with 3" A.A. and machine guns. Japanese planes were bombers and torpedo planes. Their main objective in the harbor appeared to be the battleships. VESTAL struck by bomb at frame 110 port side, a second hit at frame 44 starboard side. Each hit killed one man and injured several. They apparently punctured the ship. The first bomb struck at frame 44 starboard side, starting a fire in G.S.K. lower hold. The fire parties fought this and additional smaller fires started in various parts of the ship by debris from the ARIZONA. At least six torpedoes were counted which apparently hit the WEST VIRGINIA and OKLAHOMA moored in berths astern of the VESTAL. 0820 One torpedo passed astern of this vessel and apparently hit the ARIZONA in the bow which extended beyond the VESTAL's stern. Observed direct bomb hit in a forward turret of the ARIZONA. These were followed by an explosion in her forward magazine. This explosion started fires aft and amidships on the VESTAL. 0830 ARIZONA was observed to be settling and fuel oil on the water between ARIZONA and VESTAL was ignited. VESTAL's after lines parted, making preparations for getting underway. 0845 Cut forward lines. Underway on both engines, no steering gear. Tug pulled VESTAL's bow away from the ARIZONA. VESTAL started to list to starboard and taking water aft. Shipfitter and Blacksmith shop filling with water. 0910 Maneuvered to position S>E> of McGrew's Point bearing 30 degrees distance 910 yards, 35 feet water. Extinguished all fires except in G>S>K> lower hold. 0945 Ship settling. Draft increased to 27 ftaft the list to starboard gradually increasing, decided to ground ship. Underway and maneuvered to position with Old Aiea Railroad Station bearing 73 degrees T and W. tangent of McGrew's Point bearing 320 degrees T. #2 whitespar close alongside amidship starboard side. Dropped anchor underfoot. Ship resting in mud, ship's heard 92 degreesT. Depth of water forward 11 feet, amidships 18 feet, aft 27 feet. Draft forward 15 feet, aft 27 feet. Casualties: dead identified: Duane, W., USN, killed when bomb struck forward Reid, W.H., USN, killed when bomb struck aft. Three unidentified, one on 3" A.A. platform and two on stern of VESTAL. Those men may have been either the ARIZONA personnel blown over or VESTAL personnel so badly burned as to be unable to indentify. Additional personnel may be lost at time of explosion of ARIZONA's forward magazine. Some men were blown over the side and some jumped. the majority were picked up. an accurate check of all personnel cannot be made until the return of all hands from ashore. Unable to determine the full extent of damage until return of divers now employed ashore. The fire in the G.S.K. lower hold, compartment A-9, the after bulkhead of which is the forward bulkheading of the forward magazine, compartment A-6-M, raised the temperature of the magazine. An attempt was made to remove the powder. Thirty-seven charges were removed when the fumes became so strong that removal had to be discontinued. 3 men were overcome, necessitating removal of two to the SOLACE after administering first aid. 1115 Flooded forward magazine. ADDENDA to 8-12 watch. 1000 Pay Clerk L. Webb, USN, reported on board from 8 days leave. 12 to 16 Beached as before. 1405 General quarters. 1435 Transferred five bodies to 1010 dock, Reid, Duane and 3 unidentified bodies. flooded magazines A-5-M, A-6-M and A-7-M because of severe fire in G.S.K. storerooms A-9 and A-14 1/2 caused by bomb in it. 16 to 20 Beached as before. 1610 Set condition TWO. 1615 Fire still burning in G.S.K. lower hold. Flooded forward magazine. 20 to 24 Beached as before. 2110 Air raid alarm, crew at general quarters. 2115 Ceased firing. 2130 Set condition TWO (A.A. gun, machine guns and #3 5" gun manned).

The Purpose of the Political Party

Editorial Opinion: The purpose of the Political Party

What exactly is the purpose of a Political Party? The short version goes something like this. To create an organization that selects its candidates to be placed on a public ballot, and assist those candidates in winning elections by volunteering time or giving money to campaigns or the party.

Candidates are usually selected by several processes in other parts of the United States using mostly the primary system. But here in Utah, most political parties have nominating conventions. The primary system works well in most other States because the number of major party registered voters is about equal. This means that anyone who is registered with a specific party like Democrat or Republican simply places their name on the ballot and starts campaigning for votes. The primary election is held and the field is cut down to either a overall winner by obtaining a specific percentage of the vote, or a runoff election is held before the general election to determine who gets placed as the party representative on the General Election Ballot.

Our Utah convention system essentially fulfills the same purpose of the primary elections in most states. Should Utah change from a delegate/convention system to a straight open primary? It would probably not work well in this state. Outside of Salt Lake County the clear majority of voters are Republican, and since Democrats in Utah usually do not need primaries to select their candidates, this could open the door to some meddling.

So who should be running these Political Parties? Just as we have separation of powers between the three branches of the Government, Executive, Legislative, and Judicial with its various sub categories, we also should have separation of powers between elected officials, and the political party they represent. Additionally elected officials who act irresponsive, or are convicted of crimes should have their party affiliation stripped, and not allowed to run for public office again under the banner of that party ever again.

I also feel strongly that elected officials and staff; including Legislative, Executive, or Judicial at all levels of Government should not be allowed to seek party leadership positions. These positions like chair, vice chair, secretary, treasurer, National Committeeman and Committeewoman Etc. should be reserved to rank and file members of the party so as to involve as many people in the process, and to remove any question of special dealing for a specific person or branch of government. I would hope the major parties adopt these principles, and create a more transparent process in electing our party leaderships.


Mark E. Towner, Chair Utah GOP Audit Committee
Member Utah GOP State Central Committee
Republican State Delegate
Salt Lake County Delegate

President Valentine breaks GOP bylaws

Posted by Utah Conservative, Friday, December 01, 2006

Members of the Granite School District received the following e-mail:
Dear fellow board members, I met with Senator John Valentine last Monday and among other things he asked me to contact the board members in your district 12 to vote for Democrat Brent Goodfellow over Republican Christy Achziger. He said that Brent would help us out and Christy would be intertwined so much with Margaret Dayton that it would head the Senate down a path he does not want to go. I hope this helps . Thanks for all you do. JoDee Sundberg - Alpine School District

This is a clear violation of the GOP bylaws by Senator Valentine. The bylaws state:
After the Utah County Republican Party has a nominee, any elected office holder or candidate who supports (i.e. money or in-kind contributions, posting signs, public endorsements, etc.) or runs as a non-Republican Party candidate will be ineligible to run as a Republican during the next election cycle for any Utah County Republican Party office or partisan elected office nominated by the Utah County Republican Party. (http://www.utahgop.org/documents/2005_Bylaws_as_amended_April_30_2005.pdf)

So, are the County GOP leadership finally going to get a backbone and follow the bylaws? John Valentine should not be eligible to run for office next cycle as a Republican. I strongly urge the GOP to follow their own rules!! Additionally JoDee Sundberg, Alpine School District President, endorsed the Democrat as well; and she is a GOP delegate. Although the bylaws do not prohibt a delegate from openly endorsing a Democrat, it is bad form.
posted by Utah Conservative @ Friday, December 01, 2006

State GOP Leadership abandoning Ship?

Next Week the Republican Party State Central Committee will be meeting up at capital hill for its quarterly meeting. After the recent resignation of State Chairman Joe Cannon, it is now reported that State Party Secretary Candace Daly will also be resigning her position. This now places acting Chair Enid Greene in the position of holding the party leadership together with two of the four members of the leadership gone.

We have not held an executive committee meeting since Joe and Enid were re-elected over a year ago, and the party has serious financial problems to resolve.

In my opinion, to wait until February or March to resolve these issues would be irresponsible. I feel interim leadership should formally be put into place by the central committee. Our governing documents do not address succession of the vice chair to become the acting chair if the chair resigns. This should be clearly defined in our documents and be addressed.

In the race for Governor for 2004, there were many including myself that felt Enid should have resigned as the vice chair once she was placed on the ballot against Huntsman/Herbert in the primary. The leave of absence by Enid tactic I felt smelled to high heaven, and that loop-hole should forever be closed.

I would hope the State Central Committee takes these issues up next Saturday, and we as a party get our rudder pointed in the right direction for 2007?, and 2008.

Mark E. Towner
Member, State Republican Central Committee, Salt Lake County

Just Say NO Elected Officials!

As a member of the Salt Lake County Republican Party central committee, I attended Saturday’s quarterly meeting. The fireworks started early by an embarrassing motion submitted by Utah GOP National Committeewoman Nancy Lord calling for the resignations of Chair James Evans and Vice Chair Dana Dickson. With a quorum of over 250 members present, we overwhelmingly rejected even placing this motion on the agenda.

The real news of the meeting was a resolution submitted to the central committee that requests that GOP elected officials reject plans in Washington DC to provide DC a voting seat in congress, even if Utah were to receive an additional 4th seat in the bargain.

The following is the “Resolved” text of the resolution. I think tomorrow’s special session may end very quickly in the Senate and House when Senator Stephenson, and Representative Hughes announce from the floor the sentiments of the elected GOP central committee representatives, from the largest County in the state.


Resolved, the Salt Lake County Republican Party does not support current efforts to immediately secure a Fourth Congressional Seat for the State of Utah;

Resolved, That the Salt Lake County Republican Party admonishes Governor Jon M. Huntsman, Jr. and the state legislature to be prudent and patient by waiting until after the 2010 census to change congressional boundaries;

Resolved, That the Salt Lake County Republican Party admonishes Senator Orrin Hatch and Senator Robert Bennett, Congressman Chris Cannon and Congressman Rob Bishop to be prudent and patient by waiting until after the 2010 census to secure a Fourth and possible Fifth seat for Utah; and,

Resolved, that a copy of this resolution be mailed to each member of our Republican state and federal delegation.

Could be interesting in the morning….

Mark Towner,
The Spyglass

Republican "brand" needs repair, governors told

By Jane Sutton 2 hours, 1 minute ago
MIAMI (Reuters) - The Republican "brand" has been tarnished by corruption and poor performance and governors from the party who have presidential ambitions must return to its traditions of tight spending and smaller government.

So concluded Republican governors and their advisers gathered in Miami for a conference that ended on Friday.
The "Grand Old Party" lost control of both houses of Congress and six governorships in the November election. Republican
President George W. Bush' name=c1> SEARCHNews News Photos Images Web' name=c3> President George W. Bush has seen his job approval rating drop 3 more points to 31 percent since then, according to a Harris Poll.
Outgoing
Republican National Committee' name=c1> SEARCHNews News Photos Images Web' name=c3> Republican National Committee Chairman Ken Mehlman, who helped steer Bush's 2004 re-election, blamed the electoral drubbing partly on discontent with the
Iraq' name=c1> SEARCHNews News Photos Images Web' name=c3> Iraq war and on some candidates' scandals and ethics problems.
But pollsters said voters told them the election was more about competence than war, scandal or any shift in ideology.
They said voters now viewed Democrats as more likely to rein in government spending, cut taxes for the middle class and trim the budget deficit -- things Republicans promised when they took control of Congress in 1994.
"The image and brand of the GOP and conservatives has taken a hit and needs repair," pollster Neil Newhouse of Public Opinion Strategies told the Republican Governors Association.
"The next president has to be a fiscal hawk," said pollster Wes Anderson of OnMessage Inc., a Republican campaign consulting firm.
"They (voters) didn't fire us because they don't believe what we believe. They fired us because we didn't do what we said we were going to do," he said.
That may hurt Republican presidential hopefuls in Congress more than those in governors' mansions.
It has become common political wisdom that it is very difficult for someone in Congress to win the presidency because congressional voting records provide so much ammunition for opponents, including votes larding the federal budget with pet projects for home districts.
FROM STATEHOUSE TO WHITE HOUSE
By contrast, state governors, who function largely as chief executives and are prohibited in many states from running deficits, can point to balanced budgets and claim credit for pretty much anything good that happens under their watch.
Four of the past five presidents, including Bush, have used governorships to vault to the presidency.
Anderson said the three Republican governors considering a 2008 presidential campaign -- Mitt Romney of Massachusetts, Mike Huckabee of Arkansas and George Pataki of New York -- had good records on controlling spending and improving health care in their states, issues important to voters.
"In all three cases they can run on 'I'm one of those Republicans who lived up to what I said I'd do,"' he told Reuters.
Democrats dispute that and noted the Republicans loss of governorships under Romney's tenure as chairman of the Republican Governors Association, including in Romney's home state of Massachusetts, where his handpicked successor lost by more than 20 points.
Democratic National Committee' name=c1> SEARCHNews News Photos Images Web' name=c3> Democratic National Committee spokesman Luis Miranda cited complaints from Republican gubernatorial candidates that Romney had not done enough to aid their cause.
"He put his own presidential aspirations ahead of his own party," Miranda said in a telephone interview.
Romney, who attended the conference, agreed on the importance of job performance, saying, "There's nothing that's going to yield a bigger swat, or thumping if you will, than saying one thing and doing another."

Real Republican Majority

Principles of the Real Republican Majority




Principles of the Real Republican Majority
I BELIEVE that the strength of our nation lies with the individual and that each person's liberty, dignity, freedom and privacy must be honored and respected.

I BELIEVE that the role of government is to practice fiscal responsibility and allow individuals to keep more of the money they earn.

I BELIEVE that strong national security and safety of Americans at home and abroad must be a top priority of our Party and our government.

I BELIEVE in the Constitutional protection of the separation of church and state-- that official policies of our Party and our country should not be dictated by personal religious beliefs.

I BELIEVE that medical and moral choices are individual and family decisions not government decisions.

I BELIEVE that we build a strong Party by consensus, not by forcing an agenda on issues that are divisive, personal and best left at home.

I BELIEVE that the Republican National Committee should focus on our traditional agenda of smaller government, lower taxes, and a pro-growth economy.

I BELIEVE that the Republican Party Platform should be welcoming and respectful of differing views on issues of disagreement and promote the 'Big Tent' philosophy.

Iraq is Dems' tar-baby

Iraq is Dems' tar-baby

THE HILL November 29, 2006

An old Democratic friend of mine stopped by the Monocle last week and while there ran into a Democratic senator of long acquaintance. The Senator was, of course, quite pleased with the outcome of the election and is looking forward to the perks and responsibilities that go with being in the majority.The two talked for a few minutes, but the Senator was more than a little taken aback when my friend asked him what he and his fellow Democrats intend to do with the war they managed to acquire with their new majority. "What do you mean?" he said. "Iraq is Bush's war and his problem.""Oh, no," my friend responded, "it was his war until Nov. 9, but your party ran condemning the war, Bush's management of it and promised to end it in one way or another. Now, you guys are going to have to come up with a plan because you are in the majority and with the majority comes responsibility . especially on problems voters believe you promised to solve."It was a sobering thought and the senator was momentarily speechless, but then got very, very cautious and assured my friend that most Democrats believe it would be dangerous to do anything precipitous. Fortunately, there was no one from MoveOn.Org at the next table.To be fair, my friend overstated the degree to which Democrats have to single-handedly solve the Iraq problem, but voters are not likely to long tolerate their pre-election act of attacking Bush at every turn while offering nothing, or less than nothing, in the way of a realistic alternative.After all, while there was more to the election than the war, most of the 20 percent or so of those who voted and said the war was their No. 1 concern voted this year for Democrats because they don't like the way things have turned out for us in Iraq and are hoping for better.It is true that many of the Democratic Party's ideological allies and financial supporters seem to actually believe that the problem is nutcases who would pervert their religion to justify terror, torture and genocide, all on account of the U.S. They would argue, one suspects, that since it is our presence in the region that "creates" terrorists, all we have to do is leave and the problem will vanish.This reasoning may be persuasive within the fever swamps of the left, but most elected Democrats tend to be more realistic and few of them share this view of a world that would be a better place but for us. Moreover, as politicians they have to worry about what might happen if they "get us out of Iraq" and the forces we are fighting there decide to take us and our friends on elsewhere, or the Iranians and others look at the debacle there as evidence of our lack of will to oppose whatever it is they decide to do with their nuclear weapons once they develop them.Some of them are hoping former Secretary of State Jim Baker's Iraq Commission will save their bacon as well as Bush's by coming up with a magical strategy and end game that will both work and satisfy their base. That, however, doesn't seem likely given the intractability of the problem and the vehement insistence on the left that the war has to be ended now or that we at least begin withdrawing or "redeploying" troops soon.Some Democrats in Congress are already responding by rejecting the idea that anything but getting out matters. They dismiss the importance of whatever might happen there after we leave and seem to buy into the notion that everyone will be so happy that we're out that no one will blame them for "losing Iraq" or for the acts of an emboldened terrorist movement.Others are trying to satisfy their base by suggesting that all we have to do is seek support from our allies or the U.N., as if the Bush administration hasn't tried. Still others suggest that we do more to "train" the Iraqis but blanch at the thought that this course could require committing more U.S. forces, at least in the short term.And then, finally, there are those who denounce the Bush administration's "imperialist empire-building" on the one hand, while suggesting that what "we" ought to do is sit down and redraw the map of the Middle East along more "rational" lines.The lack of any unified Democratic stance on a crucial national security and foreign policy issue - on which the party's candidates ran and won control of Congress - means that my friend is at least partially right.Iraq is many things, including a tar-baby that congressional Democrats are going to find as difficult to get away from as the Republicans they so gleefully beat up over the last few years.
David Keene is the chairman of the American Conservative Union and a managing associate with the Carmen Group, a Washington, D.C.-based governmental-affairs firm.

Map L. is it!, we shall see by next Monday's session

Posted Wednesday, November 29, 2006, The Senate Site

Map L
To get a real sense of what happened, you need to listen to this morning's meeting. Find the audio link here.In a nutshell:Responding to requests, opinions and information gathered at the public hearings, the Redistricting Committee has morphed the plan formerly known as J into a new Map L.The new map refines Map J in the following areas:
Changes the Second District boundary to encompass Snyderville Basin (just over 7000 people), so they can vote with their neighbors in Park City. Several people at the public hearing in Park City requested this.
Makes Morgan County (about 7000 people) part of the Third District.
Includes the City of Eureka in the Third District.
Puts North Salt Lake in the Second District but keeps Bountiful in the First.
Adjusts the lines in South Salt Lake County in such a way that the population of the four congressional districts are in exact balance. Each congressional district will have an equal population of 558,292, with the exception of District One, which will have a population of 558,293.The Redistricting Committee approved this map 10-1.Next steps: We anticipate being called into a Special Session on Monday, December 4. Then it’s up to Congress.
posted by The Senate Site at 10:46 AM 18 comments

Dads Against Drug Dealers

Everyone knows that ‘drugs kill’. Everyone knows that the dealers who sell drugs, actually sell death. You probably know someone who has overdosed. If not, based on current trends, you will, unless we all stand up and do something about it! Our children DO NOT HAVE TO DIE! There are more good people than bad around us. But many are scared to stand up and do something about this monster of addiction. So many people are afraid that by calling the police on their “local drug dealers”, or their children’s friends, the will face violent retaliation! DADDS gives everyone a risk free way of joining the fight. The youth and the users know who the dealers are. Please give us their names. No one will ever find out where the police get the information. You can make a difference!
FIGHT BACK! Help take back our families and our homes!

Please click on this link and read the entire story. This could be your kid....

http://dadsagainstdrugdealers.com/

Spyglass Switching to Commerical List Server

As I had mentioned in a previous post, I have been trying to use the New Google Groups Beta in handling my subscription database for the Spyglass. Even after several attempts to work out the bugs with Google support, I have decided to subscribe to a commercial service that can do exactly what I want without the hassles.

Later this week I will be sending out a formal announcement, including a simple check box to continue receiving The Spyglass email for the day. Un-subscription will be very easy and automatic.

Mark Towner,
The Spyglass

Fusion Arena?

I have an idea for a new name for the Jazz Arena.

Energy Solutions: Jazz Fusion Arena

What do you think?

The Spyglass

Congress unlikely to act on Utah/D.C. bill

By Bob Bernick Jr.Deseret Morning News
Next week, a special legislative committee will begin taking around the state three U.S. House redistricting plans. On Dec. 1, GOP Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr. will call a special legislative session where one of these plans — or some variation drawn up by Republican legislators behind closed doors — will officially be approved. That plan will be given to Congress during its lame-duck session with the hope that House and Senate members will approve a bill that gives Utah one extra U.S. House seat and gives the District of Columbia a full-voting House seat. The U.S. House will go from 435 to 437 members, and the long-sought-after goal of giving full representation to residents of Washington, D.C., will be achieved. Or not. And the "or not" side seems to be winning, if you believe Sen. Bob Bennett, R-Utah. Bennett, a member of the GOP-controlled U.S. Senate leadership, says that the Utah/D.C. bill has little chance of passage in the two-week lame-duck session of Congress. Huntsman says if the Utah/D.C. bill is not passed before the first of the year — when Democrats take over control in both the U.S. House and Senate — then Utah is "out of business." He sees little chance of Utah getting an extra seat, as Democrats try to just give D.C. a full-voting seat — something Republicans will no doubt oppose. If all the lame-ducks do line up for Utah, however, then officials say there could be new U.S. House elections in Utah next spring — as all four newly drawn seats must find representatives. Politics is always part of redistricting. But redrawing the seats in mid-decade throws another curve — who in the current Legislature may want to run for office in the newly drawn district? First to the plate may be Utah House Speaker Greg Curtis, R-Sandy. Ironically, Curtis barely survived re-election to his state House seat several weeks ago, a canvass this week showing he won by just 16 votes. There will be a recount, but in this age of electronic voting, recounts usually hold up. Curtis has around $200,000 in his personal campaign account, clearly more than he needs to run his own (if overly close) Utah House race. Leaders often donate to their party candidates so newly elected lawmakers will support them in leadership races. But Curtis had no challenger to his second, two-year term as speaker. So he's sitting on a lot of cash — and most likely will be in the new 4th Congressional District. Others who could be in the race on the GOP side include state Rep. LaVar Christensen, R-Draper, who just lost to U.S. Rep. Jim Matheson in the 2nd Congressional District. There's John Swallow, who lost to Matheson twice, and a slew of other would-be congressmen. All three redistricting plans being taken out for public comment have the southern part of Salt Lake County as the population base of the fourth seat. And two of the plans — Plans I and J if you are watching closely — make Matheson's 2nd District more Democratic. In heavily Republican Utah that may not be saying much — but Matheson won re-election three weeks ago with nearly 60 percent of the vote, his best-ever showing. So it is clear that — at least until the 2011 normal redistricting — Matheson would be better off politically under two of the plans. That doesn't satisfy Utah Democratic Party Executive Director Todd Taylor, who says the quick redistricting now is just another example of a "corrupt system" run by the majority Utah Republicans. Plan A — the third plan going out for comment — is the four-seat plan adopted by the lawmakers in 2001. Back then, legislators adopted a four-seat alternative because state lawyers were suing to get a fourth seat. The U.S. Supreme Court ruled against Utah, and so since then we've been electing three, not four, U.S. House members. And Plan A does not necessarily help Matheson. In fact, it could hurt him politically because he — as he did in the 2001 redistricting plan — will get a whole bunch of new constituents. If Utah gets a fourth seat in the lame-duck Congress, and there are new U.S. House elections in the spring, Matheson could face a bunch of GOP-leaning voters who have not had the chance of casting a ballot for him before. But there are a lot of "ifs" that have to become "facts" before that happens. Most likely, Congress will not act on the Utah/D.C. bill in December. And when Democrats take control in 2007, they could just decide to let things ride until the 2010 Census gives Utah another U.S. House seat.
Deseret Morning News political editor Bob Bernick Jr. may be reached by e-mail at bbjr@desnews.com

Official vote count rewards two Democrts

Originally posted on Friday, November 10, 2006:

I was present at The County Building on tuesday night as a ballot count observer. It was very interesting to watch the new process. PCMI cards came in in sealed bag's and workers organized and transferred these to a tray that was taken into the counting room where six cards at a time were read and downloaded on two machines. I assumed these were dibold workers, not clerk staff. The problem I had with the process, was there was no way to know what was happening. The only thing we as observers could see was the cards being placed into the machines, the button being pushed, and the screen line entry for each card would go from red to green. Only then could you see what polling location was being uploaded. The real problem was there was no actual way to verify counts by precinct in real time. This is a flaw that must be corrected in the future, because all we have to go on is the computer spitting out total numbers race wide. We were not able to tell what precincts were already counted, or not counted like in the past.Based on some calculations on the close races in Salt Lake County, several including the House Speaker’s is still up for grabs. There are nearly 10,000 absentee ballots to be counted, and this process will not even start until this weekend.The races that could still go either way are: In my opinion, based on the statistics and percentages, the following races I feel will change when the canvass is performed and all the paper ballots are counted. I sure hope the candidates have someone watching each ballot being counted….State Senate District 9State Representative’s 22, 29, 36, 45,County Council District 3County AuditorMark Towner, the Spyglass Moderator


Article Last Updated:11/21/2006 05:37:44 PM MST

Posted: 5:17 PM- Nearly 10,000 outstanding ballots counted during Tuesday's official canvas in Salt Lake County handed two Democrats victories and forced recounts in three other tight races. Magna Democratic Rep. Carl Duckworth will remain a state legislator after the provisional and absentee ballots counted Tuesday gave him a 33 vote victory over Republican challenger Deena Ely. On Election Day, Ely had 25 more votes than Duckworth. Duckworth's victory ensures Democrats a one-seat pickup in the Utah House, increasing their caucus membership to 20. And Democrat Salt Lake County Auditor candidate Jeff Hatch beat out Republican incumbent Sean Thomas by a 1,235 vote margin. Before Tuesday's canvas, Thomas had a 344 vote lead. House Speaker Greg Curtis from Sandy retained the victory, but his 46 vote advantage dwindled to just 19 votes, within the margin for a recount. Rep. Mark Walker, R-Sandy, also will face a recount, beating Democratic challenger Laura Black by just 18 votes, before the canvas Walker had 32 more votes than Black. A recount will also take place in the Jordan School Board race between Tracy Cowdell and Lynette Phillips. Cowdell's 27 vote margin dwindled to just 12 over Phillips.