But, as we finish this battle and prepare to rejoice, let’s not forget why we had to fight this hard—we stopped being vigilant in our protection of our shared principles that made this country the great nation that our Founders believed it could be. As we remember how we got into this mess, let’s also remember that we allowed this to happen before in our lifetimes:
- After the steady economic growth and the start of real advancements in civil rights under Eisenhower, we let our guard down and gave the Democrats all of the keys to Washington—which led to a decade of an unprecedented expansion of government and civil unrest from which we still have not fully recovered;
- After the traumas of Watergate and the Vietnam War, we let our guard down and chose a fresh face with a broad smile—which led to a “misery index” unparalleled in our history and a loss of territory and influence to the Soviets around the world, all of which the then-President blamed on us;
- After successfully rebuilding our economy and military, ending the Cold War with victory, and protecting the Middle East from Iraq’s expansion, we let our guard down and allowed an immature Arkansas Governor to twice win the Presidency without a majority of the vote—which led to eight years when we ignored the growing threat of anti-American militantism in the Muslim world, which came home to roost on September 11, 2001;
and, now
- After collectively groaning with fatigue over the constant drama of the events that George W. Bush faced after 9/11, and the sudden, near-collapse of our economy in the fall of 2008, we let our guard down and allowed Chicago-style “hope and change” to take over Washington—which has led to another round of New-Deal type expansions of government into every facet of our economy, while our power to protect American interests around the world has been purposely diminished.
How many times will we make the same mistake before we learn? I, for one, refuse to go down this path one more time.
So, as we conservatives and Republicans prepare to vote in this mid-term election, I ask you to do me a favor. Every morning and evening, as you start and end the day looking in a mirror, make a simple, two-word commitment to that person you see looking back at you: Never Again!
Never Again will we let our guard down and not support our candidates, even if they are not perfect, and allow the Democrats an opening to take back Washington or Austin and to relentlessly pursue their agenda to transform this nation into a European-style state. Remember that two generations of our ancestors fought to save Europe from itself as it was transforming, and that we fought a revolution so we would not be European—let’s Never Again allow the Democrats to push us further down this path.
Never Again will we think that it is appropriate to vote against a conservative or Republican because, “he or she is not conservative enough, so if we vote him or her out of office we can elect a more conservative person next time.” Hogwash!—look at the destruction that happens in the meantime. We commit to engage in our primaries and conventions to rebuild our party and select good, strong candidates, but we will not work against our candidates once the primaries are over.
Never Again will we just sit and accept the slanders that are thrown at us because we believe that human progress, human rights and human dignity are best achieved when people are free to seek economic opportunities, acquire property, and help their neighbor, guided by the learned wisdom of their faith and the historical principles upon which this country was founded, rather than by foisting schemes upon us derived by elites without concern for history or reality; and Never Again will we allow the Democrats to mischaracterize us to our neighbors, because we commit to engage our neighbors in every community and precinct in Harris County.
Never Again will we walk away from politics after winning an election, thinking that the job is done. We commit to remain eternally vigilant by not only holding those Republican elected officials accountable to their promises, but also helping them achieve the goals they set and we supported. We commit to finding and supporting new activists, new volunteers, new precinct chairs, and new candidates for every non-partisan and partisan office in this County—people who share and will implement our vision and principles.
Please vote in the days between now and November 2nd as if your future depends on it—because it does.
And then remember and commit: Never Again!