American Revolution Two

“The powers delegated by the proposed Constitution to the federal government are few and defined. Those which are to remain in the State governments are numerous and indefinite.”
- James Madison, Federalist 45

Entirely fascinating, educational and eye-opening. That was my day on Tennessee’s Capital Hill shadowing House Speaker Beth Harwell, my house representative. It was a whirlwind day that left me amazed on so many levels. And it was nothing short of a thrill for this relatively young political activist who may someday find himself walking in the same arena. For this week’s post, I want to share a brief recap of my experience that will hopefully give you an interesting perspective of our state representatives.

These people work hard. You should see the schedule that was handed to me as I began my day with Speaker Harwell. It was two pages long and in several slots had numerous places to be at the same time! I got dizzy just reviewing it. As the day got underway, I was not only treated with great respect, but was given full access to everything going on in Speaker Harwell’s fast pace world. It was a demanding day of meetings, strategy sessions, appearances, and managing people, requests, and constituents, etc. It was non-stop, with barely time for lunch – and a working one at that.

Not only do they work hard, but the representatives I got to meet and interact with exuded a sincere dedication to doing the right thing. I was struck by the daunting challenge they have balancing the demands – the push and the pull – of the legislative process to that end. 
All day long Speaker Harwell met with different groups  and individuals – the Jr. League, American Heart Association, the Tennessee Health Care Association, lobbyists, just to name a few – and each one had seemingly valid requests, information to share, and hopes to be filled. After one such meeting, Speaker Harwell looked at me and sighed, “you can’t please everyone.” But one thing was clear to me, she sure tried.

Several key things stand out to me from what I observed when it comes to what it takes to be successful serving in this capacity:

• To be successful, you must be able to communicate with clarity, brevity, confidence and conviction. If you don’t, you aren’t going to last long at this.
• You must be a master at managing and interacting with people. I witnessed amazing people dynamics at play and among the things that struck me most was their ability to listen, interpret, manage emotions and stress, and of course remain pleasant with a servant’s heart.
• This job also calls for sharp decisiveness on the fly and the ability to constantly prioritize. In fact, prioritizing is central to what they do – all day. Whether it’s their schedule, who to meet with, what initiatives to support, who to lean on to get something passed, etc., it’s a constant drill of balancing priorities and making quick decisions.

I’m grateful for my day on the Hill with Speaker Harwell. Tennesseans should be proud of their first ever female speaker of the House and all the fine qualities she brings to her role. But I also left with a renewed understanding of just how critical it is that we, the people, are engaged in governing ourselves and being part of the process. As citizens living in a free federal republic, we must take responsibility and be accountable for our lives. We cannot just sit back and rely on our representatives to do it all. It is up to us to communicate to them what is important to us and how we want them to govern. And in order to do that, we must understand how our government works best, how it was originally established, and what truly sets us apart as a nation under God, free to worship, live and prosper.

“In the long history of the world, only a few generations have been granted the role of defending freedom in its hour of maximum danger. I do not shrink from this responsibility – I welcome it.” – John F. Kennedy, Inaugural Address, 1961

We all have questions. We all seek answers in this time of trial. America is at a tremendous cross roads and I wonder if we are even asking the right questions. In 1961, John F. Kennedy spoke words that now seem etched in the hallows of time and presidential glory: “Ask not what your country can do for you – ask what you can do for your country…” But much more of what he spoke that day bears remembering as well. Doing so will illuminate the kind of questions that need to be answered by all of us today…

“…the same revolutionary beliefs for which our forbears fought are still at issue around the globe – the belief that the rights of man come not from the generosity of the state, but from the hand of God.”

In that one sentence, Kennedy captures a profound truth of American exceptionalism that many of us have forgotten. The state does not exist to provide for us. It was established to protect what God has granted each human being – life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. Are we seeking to be served by America?

“We dare not forget that today we are the heirs of that first revolution. Let the word go forth from this time and place, to friend and foe alike, that the torch has been passed to a new generation of Americans…proud of our ancient heritage…” What have we, in this day, done with this torch of freedom for which so costly a price has been paid? Is it being passed on, or snuffed out?

“Let every nation know, whether it wishes us well or ill, that we shall pay any price, bear any burden, meet any hardships, support any friend, oppose any foe, to assure the survival and success of liberty…”  Where has the warrior heart of America gone to honor this legacy of leadership and strength?  Are we standing for freedom or appeasing evil?

“I do not believe that any of us would exchange places with any other people or any other generation. The energy, faith, the devotion which we bring to this endeavor will light our country and all who serve it – and the glow from that fire can truly light the world.”  Where has that energy, faith and fire gone? Have we allowed it to be replaced by self loathing, guilt and revisionist history?

“With a good conscience, our only sure reward, with history the final judge of our deeds, let us go forth to lead the land we love, asking His blessing and His help, but knowing that here on earth, God’s work must truly be our own.”

Have we lost our love for America? Have we allowed the cynics and the “blame America crowd” to drown out the ringing bells of liberty, justice and faith? What is America asking of us today? Are we hearing her cries from within? Have we forgotten the dreams of our founding fathers who pledged their lives, their fortunes and their sacred honor?

Let us ponder these stirring questions with a humble heart and an eager spirit. We must then go forth with courage and answer these questions with bold conviction. America’s destiny and the freedom of millions lies in our hands and the lingering embers in our hearts…

“The world is a dangerous place to live; not because of the people who are evil, but because of the people who don’t do anything about it.” – Albert Einstein

We don’t believe in evil. It doesn’t exist. People today refuse to accept its reality. We won’t acknowledge the countless ways that evil manifests itself throughout our world. We hem and we haw. We make excuses and we appease. As my friend Keith mentioned recently, “The Devil’s greatest feat was convincing us that he doesn’t exist.” Yes, and his most damaging trick today is a complete disappearing act. What else could explain the confusion, appeasement and cowardice in the face of such heinous, unmitigated evil?

“If history teaches anything, it teaches that simple minded appeasement or wishful thinking about our adversaries is folly. It means the betrayal of our past, the squandering of our freedom.”
– Ronald Reagan, March 8, 1983

Twenty eight years ago this past week, President Ronald Reagan boldly identified evil and its manifestation in Communist Russia. He did not flinch or hesitate. He called it the evil empire and said, “They are the focus of evil in the modern world.” Reagan’s undaunted stance on the Cold War was explicit: “We win, they lose.” (Watch this excerpt of Reagan’s historic speech here).

The greatest evil in the world today is political Islam. After investing hundreds of hours of study into the doctrine and 1,400 year history of Islam’s brutality, suffering and death, I have witnessed something very disturbing: many people’s reaction after being exposed to it. They don’t believe it’s a gravely serious threat to America and calling it evil would be offensive. Why? Because they simply don’t believe in evil anymore and it’s not taught or acknowledged from the pulpits on Sunday. How could any political doctrine masquerade as a religion and prompt its followers to use their kids as bombs? To kill their wives or daughters to restore the family’s honor? To stone human beings to death? To kill those who leave their system? It’s simply too grisly a reality to accept and not nearly enough do. Evil doesn’t exist and so the cause of these practices has to be explained by something else – poverty, our nation’s foreign policy, America’s sinfulness, Israel, etc.

As I mentioned on the radio recently, I have discovered something very insightful, and to my knowledge, not previously discussed or identified. There is a grieving process when learning about Islam that most people go through if they allow the veil to be removed and the truth to take root. I’ve seen it happen time and again with those who begin learning the actual doctrine and its whitewashed history. It’s similar to the grieving process that we can experience with the loss of a loved one. It goes like this:

1. Shock
2. Disbelief
3. Anger
4. Despair
5. Surrender

Learning about Islam is a grieving process because you are saying goodbye to the reality you had before coming to the full understanding of what Islam actually is and how serious our situation has become. You also grieve because you realize that your life will never be the same. You will now carry a weight with this knowledge and your priorities will change dramatically.

Fortunately, not all people allow themselves to slip into steps four and five. Instead of allowing despair and surrender to take hold, they get motivated and take action. Taking this alternate path is essential if we have any chance of turning the tide of history. And the first action is to undertake serious study and self education to replace ignorance, fear and denial.

Fellow citizens, it’s time for us to grow up and man up. Evil is real. It is present and all around us. Islamic Shariah Law is an evil political system. If you don’t believe this, I charge you to visit any Islamic country where large percentages of the population believe in such evil practices as mentioned above. The following numbers, for instance, scream bloody volumes:

Our problem with evil is not that we can’t fight back and defeat it. Our problem with evil is that we don’t believe it’s there. We can’t win the battle if we don’t realize there is one.

Whether you choose to acknowledge it or not, there is an epic, civilizational war being waged on America, right now. Its reality does not hinge on your ability to stomach it. Fight and live free, or cower and suffer slavery and death. The choice is yours…

For those who continue in denial, I charge you with the utmost sincerity of heart and love for this country, to read carefully this groundbreaking document: Shariah-The Threat to America