Conventional Summation

The two major political parties, private corporate entities, have finally finished their taxpayer supported conventions.

For those who may have believed there might have been presented any solutions of substance for the American electorate in these examples of self indulgent pomp, it must be acknowledged that nothing of national consequence was accomplished in either convention.

The Republican Party  succeeded in presenting Mr. Romney as a nice person, a man with a lovely wife and as a man who has the basic qualifications to ascend to the presidency. That obviously necessitated four days of collective nonsense. There was nothing put forth as specific policies for the nations woes and no clear vision for the future. There were pointless ad hominum attacks leveled at President Obama and the Democrats in general. It may have made for enjoyable political theater but it also showcased just how vestigial the current political party structures have become. In a nation of over 350 million, there surely must be more than two electoral options for the American electorate.

The Democratic Party found ways to create an impression of  dysfunction amidst the self proclaimed 'most inclusive convention in history'. Rather than addressing the concerns of the nation, they opted to get mired in platform language that centered on the omission of 'God' and language pursuant to the nation of Israel and Jerusalem.

Again, it made for comical political theater, but had nothing to do with the problems facing America.

The sole truly disgraceful aspect of the Democratic convention was their choice of nominating speaker and how the media fawned over the presenter, heaping effusive praise on a man who is a convicted perjurer, a man who opted to molest a woman not much older than his daughter - in the Oval Office - and who as commander in chief exhibited the clearest case of cowardice and treason. William Jefferson Clinton allowed the murder of 17 active duty Navy personnel to go unanswered for whatever calculated reasons he may have had. To the Madison Conservative, he was, and is, a coward and to have him lionized on a national stage is an affront to freedom everywhere and a slap to our military past, present and future.

All that being said, presented here is an abbreviated version of what the Madison Conservative had hoped to hear from either political quarter - further exploration of these issues will be forthcoming:

BUDGET - Before any conversation can be had on the budget, a baseline accounting must be established - how much does the government spend on paper clips? Once that starting point is established, an intelligent debate can begin on how to address the financial future of the nation.

DEBT - We must prioritize our debt to be addressed immediately. Primarily, we must repay all our foreign debt so that we are not under the financial stresses of any other nation. The debt is more than a fiscal burden - it is a matter of national security. Once the baseline budget is established, 35% of all found budgetary overages and the accompanying savings  must  be utilized to pay down the foreign debt. Once that is accomplished, it will allow the Treasury to restructure the debt so that it can be safely managed and paid down over a reasonable amount of time.

NATIONAL SECURITY - We need to return to Teddy Roosevelt's' catchphrase - "Speak softly and carry a big stick". America must honor its commitments to our allies, but we must cease to being drawn into conflicts around the globe - that is the business of the United Nations. For those who believe that America must help those in need, the question becomes where to stop. There is pain and anguish the world over - we cannot solve and fix everything. America should adopt a retaliatory stance  - we will support any nation that has been attacked, regardless of the aggressor. 

THE MILITARY - We must prioritize the military within the framework of Veterans Affairs. The Madison Conservative has spoken of its admiration and respect for entities such as The Wounded Warrior Project, but these organizations should not have a need to exist. We must support those who take up arms in defense of this nation. That compact is not merely for the duration of service, but in an age where Senators have a private subway system, how does America allow its veterans to, in essence, plead for the help they need via television commercials. There is no greater organization for good in the world than the United States Military, and we must fully support them. It is that simple.

EDUCATION - We spend more per student than any other nation on the planet. It is not an issue of money that is impeding our students. It is a system that rewards failure. There are more than sufficient anecdotal stories demonstrating how the students in charter schools are far surpassing their public school contemporaries. The answer is not to dismantle the public school system, but rather to first reform it. The most immediate issue is to remove the concept of tenure. A job for life without metrics of performance is beyond bizarre. 

GAY MARRIAGE, ABORTION, & ALL THE OTHER SOCIAL ISSUES - The framers wisely left all responsibilities not assigned to the federal government as solely the realm of the states. The federal government has no business being involved in anything not within the framework of the Constitution. Therefore, all the blather associated with such issues, while important to large parts of the electorate, must be returned to the state houses. The overreach of previous administrations have led many to believe that the federal government is responsible for addressing issues that in reality it has no vested constitutional 

interest, and therefore must not be allowed to obscure the real business of the federal bureaucracy.

That is a thumbnail overview and summation of what the Madison Conservative was hoping for, from any participant of either of the conventions.

It would have been much more helpful than hearing for two weeks that the Mitt Romney is a nice guy but that the Democrats want to overthrow the Constitution in favor of a European socialist model, or that President Obama had unprecedented issues on everything that were President George Bush's fault and that Mitt Romney wants your grandmother to die in the street from a lack of proper health care.

Such nonsense - the American electorate must demand better and can do so this November at the ballot box.