Politics Isn’t Just Local Anymore

During the last presidential campaign I did something I never did before: I made a political contribution.

Seeing Democrat Barack Obama and his openly leftist ideology for what it was I was scared for my country, so I sent a few hundred dollars to John McCain.

As an inveterate independent I had no passion for McCain or his Republican Party. He was simply the better of two bad choices. That old political saw - “A plague on both their houses” - was really how I felt.

And now that we are one year into President Obama, seeing him doing what he said he would, my worst fears are in danger of being realized.

But the ascendency of the Obama machine has not deterred me from seeking out and supporting candidates that say they will oppose his plans. Being a political junky late last December I came upon one of them, an engaging candidate running for U.S. Senate in Massachusetts.

Massachusetts?

Well, I have many friends and fraternity brothers there from undergraduate college days, so my ears catch political commentary about the Bay State.

A guy named Scott Brown - a state senator - had skyrocketed in the polls and was giving migraines to Martha Coakley the Kennedy-family Democrat stand-in; Brown, running as a self-proclaimed “Scott Brown Republican” had a legitimate chance to defeat her.

So for the second time in my life I made a modest political donation, this time on-line, giving 50 bucks to his campaign. How smug I felt, voting in Massachusetts from all the way down here in Deep South Texas.

And I am sure I was not alone in sending de-facto absentee ballots up North since at least one local Houston radio station and its conservative line-up of nationally syndicated commentators was whipping it up for Scott for weeks before election night.

The solicitations must have been succeeding because I received two election-eve emails from the Brown campaign saying thank you, they had collected hundreds of thousands of dollars, but they asked contributors to please keep sending more.

The stealthy Texas Tea Party network also had volunteers making telephone calls to get out the Brown vote; and it was emailing reminders to Texans to cough up some cash.

On election night - nose almost pressed to the television - I watched with the silliest grin of pride on my face as Scott Brown took to the podium, proclaimed victory and thanked all his supporters.

And I was one of them!

The fact that his election alone, as the 41st opposition senator, will stop irresponsible and unwanted health care reform is a momentous first-step in rebuilding a government of the people.

There is a lesson here.

Just when you could doubt that our country can return to constitutional principles, the internet allows like-minded citizens to reach clear across this great land of ours to elect new-blood who can help save it.

I plan on making more of these donations, wherever they can have the greatest impact.

America. What a country!

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