"A wise and frugal government which shall restrain men
from injuring one another, which shall leave them otherwise free to regulate their own pursuits of industry and improvement, and shall not take from the mouth of labor the bread it has earned. This is the sum of good government."
(Thomas Jefferson)


Sunday, July 24, 2011

Tom Coburn: Lady Gaga of Fiscal Conservatives

The headline makes you chuckle when know Dr. Coburn.  The only thing I could find wrong with the article was at the end when the author talked about Dr. Coburn putting reelection last.  We just elected him in 2010 for six more years.  When he ran for Senate in 2004, he said he would serve two terms and then retire so re-election for Dr. Coburn is not a thought.  It wouldn't make any difference if he was up for re-election, he would do the same thing.

We could use a lot more Dr. Coburn's in the Congress who put the Country first -- wouldn't be a bad idea to include the occupant of the White House on putting America first instead of his reelection.  Coburn has a 100% conservative rating but it is not good enough for some conservatives because horror of horrors he actually will work across the aisle for the benefit of America.  That is not a novel idea but it is one that has been missing for awhile from some of the hard headed people on both sides. 

This is my favorite part of the excerpt from the NY Times:
Senator Tom Coburn of Oklahoma was a Tea Partier long before the movement even had a name, the family physician who came to Washington to hammer on Democrats and Republicans alike.
Some people have asked why Oklahoma doesn't have a large Tea Party movement -- it is because we were the conservative grassroots here long before the Tea Party became the name of the day.  We are the ones who sent Dr. Tom to DC to hammer on both parties and their runaway spending.

In 2004. Dr. Coburn was joined by the Oklahoma grassroots to take on the GOP/Bush establishment candidate in the Republican Primary.  Heard the news he was getting in the race on the radio on my way to a Republican Women's Meeting.  His establishment opponent in the primary was going to be at the meeting.  When I told his aide that I heard on the radio Dr. Coburn was getting in the race, the candidate overheard and gave me a snarky reply filled with arrogance.  Next morning, I called the Coburn office and offered to do what I could to help him win.

In the end the establishment candidate showed his arrogance at a meeting which in turn tanked his campaign.  Dr. Coburn won the primary without a runoff, and he beat the Democrat pretending to be Conservative in the general.  Great day for Oklahoma and America when Oklahomans sent Dr. Coburn to the Senate to do exactly what he is doing.

Tom Coburn: Lady Gaga of Fiscal Conservatives

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