DennisMansfield.com

Why Bill Sali will not lose.

Idahoans have never been attracted by big DC political campaigns. It's just not in our DNA.

Typical national Dem or GOP campaign strategists do their third-party "media buys" for "typical Idahoans" from the East Coast in a milky-white homogeneous fashion of what they think Idaho is about, photoshoping the local-yokle's image onto stock footage (which is usually very beautiful) print and video.

They forget, I suppose, that in the summer, Idahoans have tans...some are even people of color (!)....and year-round, we have brains.

Why do I know they default to canned-campaigns of pain? 'Cause I saw it first hand a bunch of years ago when I had this crazy notion to run for US Congress and third party folks entered the campaign against my opponent. The candidate I ran against was beat up on unmercifully. I knew nothing about the commercials. Butch Otter prevailed and served us well in Congress and now as Governor. Idahoans didn't buy the attacks.

So, now the D's are at it, this time agaisnt Bill Sali. It's not gonna work on this side of the aisle, either.

The DCC has announced it may pour almost $350K into a Beat-Up-Bill media buy. This is ludicrous, even by BeltWay standards. Why?

First, many, many Idahoans love that certain "Helen Chenoweth/Bill Sali" quality in their Congressman. These folks are fighters and Idahoans who vote, completely enjoy that. No offense to Larry Grant but he didn't capture that spirit, even though he was a gentleman and refused the DC "stuff". He lost because he was Larry Grant...and because he had failed to bottle that "Chenoweth/Sali" scent...ultimately 'cause he didn't have it to bottle.

Now, Walt Minnick is running. Those who read this blog know that I respect the daylights out of Walt. He's no lefty-liberal "wacko" (as Limbaugh so disrespectfully puts it)...he's a good man, potentially swimming in some turbulent political white-water.

The problem is that the DCC (and the RCC, too) swoop into Iowa, er Ohio, ugh I mean Idaho (yeah that's it) and simply cause unbelievable (and unneeded) tension, disrespect and dishonor. They don't know how our rivers flow...

If Walt Minnick quietly allows/supports this type of national campaign (which I bet he'll be tempted to accept), he is a political dead man. His obituary will already have been written by Idahoans. (If he proves to have that "Chenoweth/Sali" scent, the race could STILL be up for grabs.)

Bill sali will not lose this race, because Idahohans will not let the national guys win.

On this one, I am an expert.

Den

Bill Sali's Sprint...Idaho's "Chariots of Fire".

Those who read this blog know of my support for Bill Sali. He and I have been friends for almost 18 years. When he was first elected to the Legislature, I met him there, when I was a lobbyist with Focus on the Family's Family Policy Council in Idaho.

We hit it off well. When Helen Chenoweth ran in the successful 1994 Primary, I was her Campaign Committee Chairman. When she honored her Contract with America, I was endorsed by Bill Sali as I ran for her seat against then-Lt. Governor Butch Otter, who ultimately prevailed.

Six years later Butch Otter decided to give up the seat and run for Governor. I looked at the Congressional Seat and considered running for it once again.

I met with Bill at a dinner with our wives at their work's Christmas party and we discussed the possibilities of either of us running. He asked me not to run. I considered his request and I honored him. When he won the Congressional Seat, other than his family, I was the one most proud of Bill Sali.

So what I have to say, regarding his 2008 race against Walt Minnick should have some weight to it.

Bill Sali needs to sprint to November. Not run. Sprint.

The 1st CD race victory trophy will go to the candidate who maniacally runs to the finish. Like Eric Liddle, the main character in the film Chariots of Fire, the head has to be tipped backward, the hair flowing and the arms flailing...wildly.

No one in DC will really care whether Bill Sali pulls off a successful race. Too many seats are in flux. They say they care, but not really. Freshmen are proven fodder for "the guns of November".

But ALL of Idaho will care. D's and R's.

Walt Minnick is a businessman. Odds are he will run a methodical race...well timed and not-too-innovative. Break a sweat? Maybe, but more to the point, he'll look a little like Thomas Dewey in the '48 Presidential Race. Calm collected and confident.

However, to wildly mix metaphors (at the even worse expense of combining an Eric Liddle proven-saint and a Harry Truman stubborn-political-mule), Bill "Give 'em Hell" Sali, may have to do just that....in order to break that finish-line tape in '08.

Den

Here's the Wall Street Journal article by Justin Sheck that came out July 15th on the race:

Harry McTruman and Barack O'Dewey?

When my mom, Sgt. Viginia Maguire, USMC, (stationed in Washington DC) posed for this picture at the Lincoln Memorial in 1946, Harry Truman had been President for a little over a year.

Conventional political wisdom at the time said that he was a "chair-warmer" - an little itty-bitty oddity Mo brought to the Oval Office because a horrible stroke brought down a giant of a real man (FDR).

In 1948 Harry Truman did his duty. Tom Dewey lost his "sure-thing" race.

So, last week - as I toured the Truman Museum in Indepence, MO, with my bride and my oldest son, Nate and his girlfriend, Ginny, I was struck by how unloved (even deeply disliked) Truman was during his Presidency. No Messiah...maybe a "Pretender to the Throne", but certainly no Savior. Truman did what he had to do, almost despite himself...and his abilities. His character shone. People today, 60+ years later "get it" about Harry Truman. Each President since has tried to lay title to Truman's mantle...but?

So who is "the Harry Truman" in the 2008 race?As I walked by Truman's Court House (where he served as a "Judge" - read: Administrator), I saw an Obama sign in a window that reflected Truman's "brick and mortar heritage". Thought it was kinda interesting...almost prophetic?

But just who gets to wear the "Show Me" State Favorite Son badge in this election? I'd love to read your thoughts...and why. Den

Bad Citizenship - birthright and dual - not in the original plan

Stumbled across Edward J. Erler's work out of Cal State University San Bernardino on the history of citizenship.

Don't read it.

Ok, read it...it'll change your mind. It did mine. Especially on illegal immigrants' stories and anchor babies...

And it's not just that. The article also includes dual citizens. I have a sister who was born with dual citizenship - I always understood it from the day she was born in Europe and I was 4 years old. always...until now. I have also always argued the "geography of citizenship". Erler's work opens the lid on the container that says "there's no there, there."

Click on the link to Hillsdale's site and read it completley. It's not the typical Imprimis esoteric blather.

Here's a sample:

The framers of the Constitution were, of course, well-versed in the British common law, having learned its essential principles from William Blackstone’s Commentaries on the Laws of England. As such, they knew that the very concept of citizenship was unknown in British common law. Blackstone speaks only of "birthright subjectship" or "birthright allegiance," never using the terms citizen or citizenship. The idea of birthright subjectship is derived from feudal law. It is the relation of master and servant; all who are born within the protection of the king owe perpetual allegiance as a "debt of gratitude." According to Blackstone, this debt is "intrinsic" and "cannot be forefeited, cancelled, or altered." Birthright subjectship under the common law is thus the doctrine of perpetual allegiance.

America’s Founders rejected this doctrine. The Declaration of Independence, after all, solemnly proclaims that "the good People of these Colonies. . . are Absolved from all Allegiance to the British Crown, and that all political connection between them and the State of Great Britain, is and ought to be totally dissolved." According to Blackstone, the common law regards such an act as "high treason." So the common law—the feudal doctrine of perpetual allegiance—could not possibly serve as the ground of American (i.e., republican) citizenship. Indeed, the idea is too preposterous to entertain!

General Douglas MacArthur and Interplanetary War

This month of July returned to me the memory of 34 summers ago when I stood at attention as a new Plebe at West Point, The United States Military Academy. History swirled about me. It engulfed me. I spent the next 24 months of my life as a West Point Cadet, enjoying the feel of history under foot.

One of the historical icons of West Point is General Douglas MacArthur. While at the Academy, I enjoyed reading about him and reviewing his impact on our nation.

These many years later, though, I am still amazed at something that he said, amid the text of his famous 1962 "West Point Farewell Speech" that seems to never gain traction in the history books.

Douglas MacArthur felt that our "next" World War could be with aliens...and not the kind from Mexico.

No kidding. I have always found his comments to be a little weird. Here's what he said:

"We deal now, not with things of this world alone, but with the illimitable distances and as yet unfathomed mysteries of the universe. We are reaching out for a new and boundless frontier. We speak in strange terms of harnessing the cosmic energy, of making winds and tides work for us, of creating unheard of synthetic materials to supplement or even replace our old standard basics; to purify sea water for our drink; of mining ocean floors for new fields of wealth and food; of disease preventatives to expand life into the hundred of years; of controlling the weather for a more equitable distribution of heat and cold, of rain and shine; of spaceships to the moon; of the primary target in war, no longer limited to the armed forces of an enemy, but instead to include his civil populations; of ultimate conflict between a united human race and the sinister forces of some other planetary galaxy; of such dreams and fantasies as to make life the most exciting of all times."

For his whole speech, click here.

So I suppose it just goes to prove that even really smart guys who have gained a whole lot of international respect and admiration can, at times, still be odd-balls. Something about that just makes me laugh!

Den

T. Boone Pickens: "It's incredibly stupid. We look like fools without a plan."

T. Boone Pickens' plan for removing ourselves from oil dependence was featured on GMA last week.

It's worthy of viewing and more than worthy for considering.

Pickens has a quote near the end of the piece that's a standout: " A fool with a plan is better than a genious with no plan. And we look like fools without a plan."

This is leadership.

Den

"Thank you for giving to the Lord - I was a life that was changed."

I witnessed 30+ young men and women return tonight to the US from 2 weeks of Christian missionary work in Guatemala.

It was inspiring to see. I could only say "Thank you" on behalf of the many people they touched.

One of those young adults was my 16 year old son. May we all be a little like him.

Den

Congressmen SHOULD blog....as if it's even a question?

The Congressional "franking" oversight committee is crazy.

A young, aggressive US Congressman in Texas has been blogging so his constiuents can keep abreast of his ideas...and he can hear their considerations.

How novel....

And the House Chairman of the franking committee worries that the blogging doesn't measure up to the "official communication" that comes out of that office on behalf of every Member of Congress...C'mon.

Those franking pieces by Craig, Simpson, Sali and Crapo are crap...sorry, had to position the sentence that way (tee hee). They really are. I mean, c'mon...do elected officials REALLY want to hear from their constituents via those "surveys", etc? Are you kidding? You think so? Say it to me with a straight face...

Then this guy comes along in Tx and wants honest dialog via blogging and it's a NO-NO.

Hmmm...maybe we should just restrict communication to the telegraph - after all it worked for folks in the past.

Den

Robert Plant - this ain't your Daddy's Zep-man

I love the Raising Sand CD by Robert Plant and Alison Krauss. It came out in late 2007 and has a feel to it that is remarkable. If you are any fan of his work form the 60's you'll probably be surprised at the sound he's making today, along with Ms. Krauss.

Check out a few really nice performances by them. Buy the CD, really.

Gone, Gone, gone.

Please Read the Letter

And most of all:

Black Dog!!! (No kidding....watch it and smile.)

Hey, hey mama, say the way you move.....

Den

Greater Tuna....Texans on a platter

Had a great night at the Stage Coach Theatre with my bride watching "Greater Tuna" be performed by Ben Hamill and Rob Tromp, directed by Randall Webster.

With all my interest in plays and musicals, I'd actually never set foot in the SCT until tonight. It was quite a treat, while at the same time realizing its limitations (small stage, limited seating, threadbare feel to it).

The theater itself kinda reminded me of Scarlett O'Hara, wearing her newly sewed old-drapes-to-evening-gown outfit as she set off to visit Rhett Butler....nice, but.....well, you get the picture. Still, the perfomance was wonderful.

In the second half of the play, a pastor character delivers an impromtu eulogy of a newly-deceased Judge Roscoe Butler.

It reminded me of every bad political speech I've had the discomfort to deliver...and others have had the greater discomfort to sit through. Click above and watch a You Tube version of the hackneyed, used up and public domain expressions of this poor speech and laugh!

Den