Senator Chuck Grassley is apparently not a big fan of those who preach some variant of the “prosperity gospel.” In fact, this form of ministry troubles Grassley so much that this past winter he decided to use his considerable power as the “former chairman and now Ranking Member on the Senate Finance Committee” to launch a full-blown investigation into the operational affairs of six “prosperity-gospel” ministries: Without Walls International Church; World Healing Center Church, Inc./Benny Hinn Ministries; Joyce Meyer Ministries; World Changers Church International; Kenneth Copeland Ministries; and New Birth Missionary Baptist Church. (more…)

Three cheers for Cardinal Egan.

Update: For thoughtful commentary on the matter, see here, here, here, and here.

[Ed. This is another post from my Alexham archives at RedState. I penned this post right before McCain secured the GOP nomination, and the message remains as true then as it does now: It is time for conservatives to rally around Senator John McCain. To a certain extent, this has already happened; but there are still a few holdouts amongst us (Centinel, I am looking in your direction), and this post is being republished here for their consideration.]  

I know many of you aren’t thrilled about supporting McCain, and some of y’all have even made blood oaths that you will never vote for “that man.” And trust me. I get it. I know exactly where y’all are coming from. For some, it was McCain’s opposition to President Bush’s tax cuts. For others, it was McCain’s cheerleading for patently unconstitutional campaign-finance legislation. For social conservatives, it was McCain’s support for federal funding of embryonic stem cell research. And for many, it was all of the above, as well as McCain’s propensity for bucking the Republican establishment and cozying up to liberal dems like Ted Kennedy. Understandably, these things have irked many a conservative, including yours truly. (more…)

I am pleased to see that my reposting of ”Who we are instead” generated two excellent, thought-provoking responses by Joel and Centinel. Needless to say, this is an important topic, and I am interested in hearing what others have to say about the future of conservatism in these United States.

So, in addition to any comments generated by the posts noted supra, I invite other bloggers/readers to submit their own posts on “The future of the GOP and Conservatism,” which I will link to or republish in this master post.

My hope is that these posts will spark discussion in the conservative blogosphere, and help us visualize where we need to go from here.

It’s about ideas and principles, folks. It always has been.

[Ed. This is a post from my "Alexham" archives over at RedState. I am reposting it here because I believe the overall message of the post needs to be restated before we gather together for the national convention in September.]

I can still remember the day after the 1994 midterm elections. It was an unusually sunny day in the Southland, and all seemed right with the world. After all of those years in the wilderness, the Republicans had finally taken control of the House, and soon thereafter, the Senate. We would do things differently, we promised. We were a different kind of political party. Unlike the Democrats, who only care for power for power’s sake, we sought power to make a profound difference in the lives of every-day Americans.

How different things look thirteen years later. Somewhere along the line, we lost our way. I think most Republicans instinctively know this, but have trouble articulating exactly when things began to unravel for our party. What we do know is that the Republican Party is at crossroads. We are a party in search of an identity, and the path we choose will have long-term ramifications not only for the GOP, but for these United States. (more…)

I am pleased to announce that today I was elected by the Eighth District Republican Party in Georgia to serve as a delegate to the Republican National Convention. Pretty cool, eh?

Minneapolis/St. Paul, here I come!

I may even do some live blogging.

If any of SA’s readers plan on attending, please let me know and we’ll plan a little get together.

Sorry, K-Lo, your man simply cannot be trusted.

(LvRS)

Well, it looks as though Senator Brownback just may be able to hang with the big boys when it comes to raising money after all.

(LvJoe)

Will the real Mitt Romney please stand up?

As I’ve said before, I am not sure whether Senator Brownback can win the GOP nomination, but we’re going to have a good time giving McCain, Giuliani, and Romney the business in the process.

Translation: Frist could not raise any money to support a presidential run.

Sound advice from Pat Buchanan:

What conservatives should do now is what they should have been doing for six years. Stand behind the president when he fights for low taxes and conservative judges. But when he joins with Pelosi, Fox, Calderon, and McCain-Kennedy for open borders, or with Dick Durbin for “moderate justices,” give him another “thumping” like he got from conservatives when he sought to elevate Harriet Miers and just as he got from the nation on Nov. 7. 

K-Lo at the Corner seems to be jumping on board . . . or at least endorsing the idea that a Newt campaign would make things fun.

I’m in Atlanta for Thanksgiving, preparing to eat as though I’ve been deprived of food for some time.  While perusing today’s AJC, I noticed that former Ala. Chief Justice Roy Moore has an op-ed providing the reasons why the GOP lost in the recent elections.  Enjoy.

Yet another reason the GOP is often referred to as the Stupid Party.

Because he’ll kill both terrorists and unborn children.

Seriously, if this guy gets the nomination, then I will completely sever any ties I have with the national Republican Party.

Where did the revolution go astray? How did we go from the big ideas and vision of 1994 to the cheap political point-scoring on meaningless wedge issues of today – from passing welfare reform and limited government to banning horsemeat and same-sex marriage?

The answer is simple: Republican lawmakers forgot the party’s principles, became enamored with power and position, and began putting politics over policy. Now the Democrats are reaping the rewards of our neglect – and we have no one to blame but ourselves. ….

We will not find ourselves by conforming to the status quo, but by returning to our Reagan roots.

When we act like us, we win. When we act like them, we lose. Let’s win.

Dick Armey comments on the Republican rout and regaining lost ground.

Good. We certainly need his voice in the 2008 Republican primaries.

Courtesy of my main man, Senator Rick Santorum.

Pat Toomey on the elections at NRO:

For years, Republicans had successfully branded themselves as the party that wanted smaller government, less spending, balanced budgets, and low taxes. The brand sold because most Americans understand that governments are inveterate money-wasters and because people naturally want to keep more of what they earn. Voters used to think that Republicans meant what they said when it came to limited government. They don’t any more.

A fascinating interview with one of my Federalist heroes, Attorney General John Ashcroft.

(LvMike)

Much ado is being made about Rush saying yesterday that the GOP losses of the House and Senate were liberating for him. Many say it puts the lie to Rush’s rhetoric, and that it shows he was misleading his audience. Whatever.

For what it’s worth, I share Rush’s sentiment. How many bloggers here at SA have, at one time or another, written or said “I know the current GOP isn’t doing what I’d like them to do, BUT…” only to spend a paragraph or ten explaining, as a conservative, that the GOP’s brand of big government was the lesser or two evils or that Bush’s plan for Iraq wasn’t ideal but preferential to what Kerry would have done?

I know I’ve done that, not only here but in conversations with fellow Federalist Society members, and with Democrat and Libertarian friends. For the longest time, conservatives of all stripes have been a people without a party. We took what was available to us, and invested our votes and confidence there. When our investment proved unwise, we explained how a loss in one area was OK because we would win in others (mostly judges for me).

That’s all over, at least for now. The Supreme Court was never fully delivered, though progress was made. The House and Senate will be locked in mortal combat with the White House for a good bit of time. Iraq will get a once-over with a fine-toothed comb, but little will change immediately. In the mean time, those of us who have been holding the conservative line for the GOP don’t have to explain our support of a party that lost its direction long ago.

I can freely say - without fear of turning the undecided conservative voter into a non-voter or a protest voter - that the GOP ain’t what it used to be. If you’re a conservative, don’t count on the current incarnation of the GOP to help you. To the extent the current GOP lost its control, it was a deserved beating.

There. I feel better.

I think it somewhat certain that, although this election was a big victory for the Democrats, it had very little to do with them.  I have yet to hear anything from the Democrats or their supporters other than Anti-Bush, Anti-Republican fervor (some of this criticism comes from Republicans as well, and some is deserved).  Pure criticism might get you elected (once), but at some point to have to take the stage and lead with a substantive plan for the future.  I still wonder what will that be for the Democrats with regard to, for example, the War on Terror? 

I remember with fondness a home-made video (probably on the net somewhere) where a young man with a microphone and a cameraman interviewed various anti-Bush marchers on the streets of New York around the start of the Iraq war.  They were going down the usual list: we are there for oil and money, Bush is Hitler, etc.  The young man did not attack them, he just asked them simple questions like “How would you deal with Saddam/the terrorists?”  In every single case, there was no real response.  One said something like “Talk to them” or “Leave them alone,” some were simply stumped (probably because their worldview nixed the possibility of war in a priori fashion).  This is the Democrats’ real problem, and it has been acknowledged by some of them.  What is your agenda?  The economy?  It is going through the roof.  The War on Terror?  How would you fight it differently but effectively? It will be interesting to watch, because the voters will not stand for continued Bush-bashing in lieu of a plan.        

In case you don’t check Drudge every hour or so, that’s the headline story.

It has been a long time since I posted here. My prolonged absence was caused by a self-imposed silence while I practiced at a firm this summer and then the busy schedule of 2-L interviews and callbacks as well as playing on a state champion sports team.

While reading this(clearly comical) post today, I realized the sad truth of the matter is that my party has, in fact, left me. –NOTE: I am clearly speaking for myself, and not the other authors here- Gone is the Republican Party I once proudly supported. I will not be voting for a single candidate with the letter R next to his name tomorrow, and after the jump is why: (more…)

Quin Hillyer predicts that Republicans will retain control of both the House and Senate tomorrow. While I hope he’s right, I’m not too optimistic with regard to the House.

Start making phone calls, and get out the vote.*

 *The link is a referral link, which lets the GOP folks know that you signed up through SA.

Here’s a good example of why I often refer to to the Republican Party as (credit to Mark Shea) the “Stupid Party.”

This one directed at Dem candidate for Texas governor, Chris Bell (aka Mr. Way-too-liberal-for-Texas-guy), by incumbent Rick Perry (aka Governor Goodhair).

This is awesome.