Romney Raises $10.25 Million in a Single Day

CBS News reports that although he has not yet declared himself a presidential candidate, Mitt Romney raised $10.25 Million in a single day fundraising effort in Las Vegas. The article reports that Romney is tapping into Wall Street and Mormon donors. The question has been raised that if these individuals are essentially investing their money in Romney, where are they not investing their money? What other causes or business efforts if any are going unfunded?

Are America's Best Days Behind Us Or In Our Future?

A recent Rasmussen Reports poll found that 44% of likely voters felt that the nation's best days were in the past, while 38% felt that America's best days were yet to come.

The more startling difference comes when looking at the difference of opinion among Democrats and Republicans.

Among Democrats 54% believe that the nation's best days are yet to come.

Among Republicans 61% believe that America's best days are in the past.

One is left to wonder how much the rhetoric of conservative pundits and talk show commentators may be affecting Republican opinions on this question.

To read the Rasmussen Reports story, click here.

Political "Affairs"

After Nevada Senator John Ensign (R) admitted to having an affair with a staffer, Rasmussen Reports reported that 37% of Americans believe that most members of Congress have extramarital affairs.

Last week, after Governor Mark Sanford's (R-SC) admission of an extramarital affair, a Rasmussen Reports survey found that only 24% of Americans feel that most members of Congress DO NOT have affairs. Thirty-eight percent (38%) said that they were not sure.

When asked whether a politician who has an affair should resign or be forced out of office, the results were as follows:

• 47% of Republicans said yes
• 39% of Democrats said yes, and only
• 35% of unaffiliated's said yes.
  

To some degree this may illustrate how commonplace adultery has become in our society, or how little we expect of our elected officials.

For the Republicans, these recent stories have brought about yet another difficulty. The Republican party has for some time labeled itself as the party of traditional and family values. The Party has specifically made an issue of this as it has fought for traditional marriage and against same-sex marriage.

These revelations that significant Party players are, by traditional standards, immoral, place the Republican Party in a position to be mocked and accused of being hypocritical.

One recent example would be the political cartoon drawn by Daryl Cagle for MSNBC.com in which he depicts a casually dressed donkey wearing a t-shirt which reads "I'm with Holier-than-thou Hypocrite Christian Adulterer" on an arrow which points to an elephant in a business suite with his pants down.

It is not coincidental that the mocking of the Republican Party is accompanied in this case by mocking the Christian religion as well.

To read the Rasmussen Reports article, click here.
To see the Daryl Cagle political cartoon, click here, and proceed to cartoon #10.

Sonia Sotomayor nominated to serve on the Supreme Court

Judge Sonia Sotomayor has been nominated to fill the vacancy being created by Justice David Souter's retirement.

Sotomayor is currently serving on the U.S. Second Circuit Court of Appeals. She was nominated to that position by President Clinton after having served in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York. She was nominated to her District Court position by President George H.W. Bush.

Although generally considered a judicial centrist, she is on record making comments about the policy making role of the court. Her confirmation to the Court of Appeals was delayed for over a year, an anonymous senator having placed a "secret hold" on her nomination.

Being of Puerto Rican ancestry, if confirmed to the Supreme Court, Sotomayor would become the Court's first Hispanic Justice.

The examination of the arguments made in favor or in opposition to her confirmation, not merely for their content but for the level of divisiveness they may or may not engender, will be as important as examining her judicial background.

A far more conservative agenda for Utah?

A Los Angeles Times blog posting commenting on the "political fallout" from Governor Huntsman's appointment as Ambassador to China, noted that conservatives were pleased to be rid of Huntsman and his relatively moderate stance on various issues.

The Times blog posting quoted Dr. David Magleby, dean at Brigham Young University, as saying:

This state will see, I think, a far more conservative agenda shared by both the governor and the Legislature than we've had in two decades.

A more conservative agenda by both the legislature and the governor's office may, oddly enough, not be all good news for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints which has its headquarters in Salt Lake City. Although the Church would likely favor a conservative attitude toward same-sex marriage and perhaps even domestic partnerships, a more conservative approach in dealing with illegal-immigrants might hamper the Church's missionary efforts among that population.

Having the legislature and the governor's office both at the same end of the political spectrum raises the concern that "group think" may develop. In such a situation, either everyone thinks alike, or they are afraid to express a different opinion for fear of retribution.

A statement attributed to General George S. Patton serves as a word of caution here:

If everyone is thinking alike, then somebody isn't thinking.

To read the Los Angeles Times story, click here.