Real Change Requires Real Change
By Chuck Muth (06/24/07)
An oft-repeated lament by voters and non-voters alike is that no matter who we elect, regardless of party, nothing seems to change. Government continues to grow, becomes ever more intrusive in our daily lives and gets more and more expensive. Indeed, over the last few decades the only real changes in the attitude toward and the direction of government were the result of Ronald Reagan's election as president in 1980 and Newt Gingrich’s takeover of Congress in 1994.
Both, however, were short-lived.
Despite hopes and promises that President Bush the First would continue and solidify the Reagan legacy, he instead reverted to the old go-along-to-get-along ways and raised taxes, despite what his lips told everyone on the campaign trail. And once Newt left Congress and President Bush the Second took over, government spending and intrusiveness again expanded by leaps and bounds.
No wonder voters kicked Republicans in the tush last November.
So what we have now is good, old-fashioned political gridlock again. And while many cheer this state of affairs, arguing that at least it prevents the situation from getting much worse, America’s challenges and problems, and our ability to deal with and resolve them, ARE getting worse due to inaction and inattention.
How to defend the nation against new and lethal terrorist threats without sacrificing essential liberty at home? How to resolve the problem of millions of illegal immigrants presently living in this country? How to resolve the fact that Social Security cannot survive as presently administered? How to make health care affordable again without a government take-over of the system? How to improve education so that American kids will be able to compete, not with kids around the country, but with kids around the world? How to simplify the insanity that is our present income tax system? How to reduce, if not eliminate, the “pork” in government spending?
These are serious problems and challenges which require serious discussion and serious solutions. In other words, Congress isn’t the answer.
As Newt Gingrich is wont to say these days, real change requires real change. And that means change coming from the grassroots up, not from the ivory tower of Congress down. And to that end, Gingrich has launched a new movement which he hopes will build upon the temporary success of 1994’s Contract with America. The new movement is called American Solutions.
The concept is simple, but quite ambitious…which should come as no surprise considering it comes from the cranial orb of the former House Speaker. Gingrich has never been one to think small.
The idea, which is still a work in progress, is to focus on set number of problems or challenges facing the nation, then use the power of the Internet to organize millions of Americans to listen to and participate in discussions of those problems in a nationally-televised interactive “workshop,” and then activate those grassroots activists to push candidates and elected officials to implement recommended solutions to the problems. Instead of politicians making empty promises to voters, voters will be making specific demands of politicians.
As Gingrich explains, “Our goal is to create a wave of change that meets America's challenges, seizes our opportunities and builds a better future for all Americans.” He adds, “Only a grassroots citizens' movement that transcends political parties and generates enormous energy and drive from the country to overwhelm Washington, the state capitols, the county commissions, city councils and school boards can possibly create the scale of change we need.”
Yep, that would be real change alright. If Gingrich can pull it off. And considering his track record, it might not be a good idea to bet the farm against him.
Gingrich’s first scheduled national workshop, deemed “Solutions Day,” will be held on Thursday, September 27th – which, not coincidentally, happens to be the 13th anniversary of the Contract with America. On that day, folks around the country will gather in homes and town halls to listen to possible solutions to some of America’s most vexing problems…and then receive “marching orders” for how to effect change and implement those solutions.
If you’d like to be part of the solution and not the problem; if you’d like to “get in the game” and not just sit in the peanut gallery and heckle from the stands, you just might want to consider signing up to participate in Newt’s “Solutions Day” this September. To do so, just surf on over to www.americansolutions.com and click on the “Join the Movement” button.
Although it seems more and more unlikely that Gingrich will throw his hat into the presidential ring this fall, his American Solutions brushfire movement has the potential to dramatically change the public policy debate in that race even if he’s not in it officially. That would be real political change. And that would be quintessential Newt.
Copyright 2007 Chuck Muth. All rights reserved.
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